The Child of Time
by yaoikaylor
Summary: In the far off future Morgana has successfully destroyed Albion, with Arthur and Mordred killing each other. Arthur's last heir, Hanthur Pendragon, has been on the run ever since he was born. When the need to bring peace back to Albion seems lost his last hope is to forever trade his magic for a chance to go back in time to rewrite history. Merlin/Arthur, Hanthur/Gwaine, MPREG.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Merlin (sadly).

**Rated:** M, for good reason...Mpreg :D

**Summary: **In the far future, Morgona have succeed on destroying Albion after Arthur and Modred killed each other. Arthur's last Heir, Hanthur Pendragon, has been on the run ever since he was born. When his hope to bring peace to Albion again seem loss, he trade his magic to go back in time to rewrite history. Merlin/Arthur Hanthur/Gwaine

******Special Thanks to: **Loopstagirl and Speedy Speck for helping me with the editing :D

**A/N: **Hello, everyone! This is the first time I ever post a story online. I mean I wrote stories ever since I was twelve but I never really post any of them. I don't know why...anyways, this is going to be a sixteen long chapters story (hopefully). I am recently huge fan of Merlin (yeah I know...where have I been right?) and decide to write a couple of stories of Merthur :D Oh yeah, I am Pro-gay and I loves yaoi/slashes...straight stories never really my thing...anyways, I know Hanthur Pendragon is a OC but I hope that you guys will grow to like him...he is not going to get between Arthur and Merlin...this is a Merthur fanfic so it will stay that way...anways...enough of my babble and enjoy reading it :D

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Chapter 1

It had been eighteen years since the Fall of King Arthur, and nine years since the death of the Great Wizard Merlin. All the Knights of the Round Table had died one by one at the hands of Queen Morgana as they risked their lives to save Hanthur Pendragon, the last heir to the throne of Camelot, leaving all but the Knight Gwaine.

The sound of magic arrows swooshed around them as they ran through the thick, dark swamp, with the footsteps of Queen Morgana's undead soldiers following close behind. It had been three days since she'd found their hideout, and in order to escape Sir Leon chose to stay behind and buy them more time. He was dead. Hanthur could feel it, just as he felt Sir Gwaine's life too was slipping away. A venomous snake sent by Morgana had bitten him, and the two men both knew that no one could survive after such a bite. But even so, he promised Hanthur that he would keep fighting until they reached the Dark Forest; a sanctuary created by the twelve high priests of the Druids when Queen Morgana became a threat to all of those with magic. Hanthur hoped that maybe they would be able to help Gwaine. He had lost so many people dear to him. He couldn't bear to lose another.

They were only a few feet away from the Dark Forest when the undead soldiers caught up to them. Hanthur held Excalibur tight in his hand. Merlin had given it to him before he died, telling him it was his father's and to wield it with pride. He swung the sword to defend himself from one of the undead as they slammed down their sword. Gwaine quickly used the hilt of his sword to knock down the soldier attacking them, buying them a moment of time.

"Sorry" he apologized before he took Excalibur from the Prince and started to fight the soldiers himself. Hanthur was a great swordsman, no doubt about it. The Knights of the Round Table trained him after all, but still his strength and talent was still not the same. He didn't have their experience.

After Gwaine had finished off every last one, he rushed to the Prince's side.

"Come on!" He said, and pushed the Prince towards the Dark Forest.

As long as they passed through the veil, then neither Morgana's magic nor her undead soldiers could get to them. Just two or three more steps and they would be safe. However, before they were able to reach it one stray magic arrow shot after them.

It caught Gwaine straight in his chest, piercing his heart. The Knight dropped Excalibur into the swamp and it vanished deep below, but before anything could be said, he pitched forward.

"Gwaine!" Hanthur cried and caught his Knight before he could hit the ground.

With his last ounce of strength Gwaine pushed forward and both of them fell through the veil. The Knight landed on top of Hanthur and he could see crystal tears form in his ocean blue eyes. He grinned down at him as they shared one last gaze. Without any words, his soul left his body.

"Gwaine," the Prince whimpered. He could do nothing but hold him tightly and cry.

* * *

His nails were bleeding from digging as he laid his last Knight into the three-foot deep hole. He folded Gwaine's hands across his chest, and then began the slow process of burying him beneath the dirt, tears falling from his eyes. Once all the dirt was in place, he began picking up stones, the finest he could find, and started to build them up. He only wished that he had something to send Gwaine off with, flowers perhaps, or even some alcohol given the man's personality. But he could offer nothing but his grief.

The Dark Forest was dead, the only sounds being the eerie cries from skeleton trees. Realisation hit Hanthur with a jolt. He was alone. Everyone was dead. There was no one left, just him. How was he supposed to fight against Morgana when he had no one else to reply on anymore?

His legs gave out on him and he fell to his knees. He was so tired, so tired from the entire running and fighting. He didn't want to do it anymore. He just wanted to be with everyone. Maybe, if he just died now, he could be reunited with them, wherever they were. His body slumped down next to the grave as the thought repeated through his head. He was so tired, so very tired.

Eventually, he gave into sleep.

* * *

He must have been lying next to Gwaine's grave for about five days now, but he couldn't really tell. In the Dark Forest there was no day or night, only clouds hovering over the skies. He hadn't eaten or drunk anything for days and his red lips were chapped and his skin was beginning to cling too tightly to his bones. Even though he was weak, he could feel it, his magic. It was so strong that it was protecting his body from insects and any other predators from coming too close. Merlin taught him how to control it when he was alive and after he was dead Gaius took over his training. He was adequate, but not as good as Merlin. A little while after he turned thirteen Gaius passed on, and there was no one else to teach him. He couldn't control his magic anymore, so he couldn't call out to it when he was in need, but it always protected him at his most vulnerable times. Like now.

Not that it mattered. He didn't care about controlling his magic anymore, because he knew he was going to die soon. He simple didn't have the will to live anymore. The sooner he died the better, and then it would all be over. Again, he closed his eyes to sleep and hoped that he would not wake up.

"It's not your time yet, young Prince…"The unfamiliar voice of a woman floated through the air.

He opened his eyes and realized that he was no longer in the Dark Forest. He was lying on a ground filled with white pebbles with a silvery lake in front of him. He sat up and looked to find a feminine white figure standing in the heart of the lake. He stood up, enchanted by this being. "Who are you?"

"...I am the Lady of the Lake..."

"What do you want from me?"

"...I want what you want, young Prince. For eighteen years of Morgana's reign, all magical creatures and humans have been hunted down and slaughtered. I want all this darkness to end as well..."

"But what can I do? I am just one person," he said, ashamed of his own weakness. He had been hoping to die, after all. How could he fight now? "What can one person like me do?"

"...There was a time when a sorcerer exchanged his magic to travel back in time and he helped the Great King of Camelot end all the bloody wars of all five kingdoms. I believe you can do the same..."

"Exchange my magic to change history?" Hanthur exclaimed, his mind whirling.

"...Yes, my young prince. Are you willing to give up your magic to change everything?"

As he stood there, he wondered if this Lady of the Lake was lying to him or if she telling the truth. In his bedtime stories, Merlin often told him about the Lady of the Lake that lived in the Lake of Avalon and helped guide the lost souls back to the right path. If the Lady of the Lake was telling the truth then he would see everyone again. He really did want to see them again.

"Yes." To Hanthur's mind, it seemed that was the only answer that he could give.

"Very well then, my Prince. Our future lies in your hands..."

Excalibur floated outward from the water, droplets gleaming from its surface as it emerged, hilt first.

"Take it and stab it into your heart. It won't kill you, it will only absorb your magic." Slowly, Hanthur took the sword and placed it where his heart was. He knew he was taking a risk but even if it was a lie and he died, he wouldn't mind. Not really. Everyone was gone anyway so his life didn't seem like it was worth much.

As he dug the blade into his flesh, his breath caught in his throat. The pain was terrible, but he didn't stop, not until the blade was all the way through his back. His magic could sense that he was injured and tried to heal him. The sword however did exactly as the Lady of the Lake had said and absorbed the magic running through his body. He thought he would be surrounded by a cold darkness, but instead a warm light surrounded him.

* * *

He was awoken by the sounds of chirping birds and crickets. His eyes fluttered open slowly and he winced as the light burnt his eyes. It didn't take him long to realize that he was lying by a lake, but it was not the same lake as in his dream. Or was it even a dream? No, it couldn't be. The place was unfamiliar and before meeting the Lady of the Lake he had been lying next to Gwaine in the Dark Forest. Where was this place? He climbed to his feet and glanced around, trying to figure it out as he began to walk. In his distracted state, he didn't really take notice of what was in front of him and soon found himself walking straight into a horse. Five horses in fact.

"Hey," someone said from a few feet away. He turned towards the voice and his eyes widened as a smile graced his lips. It was Sir Leon, looking well and alive and even younger. There were three other Knights following him. "Who are you and what are you doing here?" Leon demanded.

He was so dumbstruck by seeing the Knight that he had a hard time finding his voice. "Leon, it's me, Hanthur."

The Knight looked at him suspiciously. "I never see you before in my life," he said. "Where is your traveling visa?"

"My what?"

"Your traveling visa, or are you a resident of Camelot?" Asked one of the other Knights.

Hanthur looked away, blinking. "I don't understand."

Leon sighed and said, "A trespasser. Arrest him."

Two knights grabbed him so suddenly that he didn't get a chance to defend himself. "What? Why am I arrest? I didn't do anything!"

"These grounds belong to Camelot. If you are not a resident nor have a traveling visa, you are trespassing," said Sir Leon. "Take him away."

"I thought Camelot was destroyed," Hanthur muttered, more to himself than out loud, but Leon heard him and his brow furrowed.

"How dare you curse Camelot? Your insolence shall not be tolerated. You will spend the rest of your days in the dungeon!"

Suddenly fear overwhelmed the young Prince. "No, wait! I'm not cursing Camelot! I'm just...I'm..."

"Sir Leon, what are you doing bullying a boy?" A blond man in armor came from the forest behind Leon, sheathing his sword. Hanthur didn't have to ask to know who the man was. He had heard so many stories from Merlin about this man that even though he had never seen him before, this is what he had imagined him to look like. This man was his father, Arthur Pendragon. "Hi, I'm Prince Arthur Pendragon. What is your name? And what are you doing here?"

Hanthur was awestruck to be in front of his father for the first time. He never imagined that he would ever get the chance to meet the man. He licked his bottom lip and answered, "I'm Hanthur Pen—ny. Hanthur Penny."

"Hanthur Penny?" Arthur looked at him suspiciously.

He nodded. "I came to Camelot to find a family friend named Gaius. On the way here my baggage and gold were stolen," he lied quickly and averted his eyes to Sir Leon. "And the thief told me Camelot was burnt to the ground. That's why I thought Camelot was destroyed."

Arthur narrowed his eyes at him, studying him. The boy had some bruises under his jaw and left cheek like he had been in a fight. His clothes seem to be covered with dirt and torn in odd places. But what bothered Arthur the most was that the more he studied the boy, the more he realized that the boy looked a lot like himself. He was almost a splitting image of Arthur when he was younger, except for the dark hair and his eyes. His eyes were a deeper blue like Merlin's. He pulled away and said, "We will see if you're telling the truth when we go see Gaius. Now we need to get going," he turned towards the others, "Sir Leon, he will be riding with you. My father will be angry if we are late today."

Hanthur's eyes widened. "Uther is still alive?" All the Knights and the Prince turned to him again and he quickly added, "the thief also said his highness is dead. I'm sorry. I didn't mean any disrespect."

Arthur wasn't amused but he ignored the comment and continued onto his horse. As Hanthur climbed onto the horse with Leon and they made their way to Camelot, he was surprised by how beautiful Camelot looked before Morgana destroyed it. He had only seen Camelot once when he was six but it was dark and dreary.

"It's beautiful here," he said in awestruck voice. He missed Arthur's small smile of pride at the words.

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**A/N:** Let me knows what you think? Leave your love in the review box below. :D**  
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	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Merlin (sadly).

**Rated:** M, for good reason...Mpreg :D

******Special Thanks to: **Loopstagirl and Speedy Speck for helping me with the editing :D

**A/N: **I want to thanks cristina reid and Kasih1990 for the sweet comments and also thanks my other readers who favorite and follow me. Here is chapter two and hopefully you will enjoy it.

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Chapter 2

Hanthur hopped off the horse after Sir Leon. He was still admiring the view of how lovely the castle looked when Leon grabbed his arm, pulling him inside. His eyes furrowed angrily at the Knight. He was tugging Hanthur toward a destination unknown to him in a very harsh way. The Leon he knew wouldn't act this way towards him, but then again, this was during the Reign of Uther. He looked to Arthur but he wasn't paying attention to them. He seemed to be talking and laughing with a chocolate-color woman in maid clothing. She looked familiar but Hanthur couldn't pinpoint who the woman was or where he knew her. Leon led him up the stairs towards a room in a more unknown part of the castle.

"Where are you taking me?" He demanded, but the Knight remained silent.

They continued down a long corridor and stopped in front of a wooden, bolted door. Leon opened it and shoved him inside; make him stumble a little bit as he did so.

"Gosh, I thought a Knight would have more honor-" Hanthur paused, his lips slightly opened in shock as everything seemed to slow down as his eyes fell on the man. He was sitting in a chair in front of a table, polishing some armor pieces. This man, from all the people that he had lost, was the one he missed the most.

"Merlin..." he whispered, low enough for only himself to hear, his voice trembling. There were tears stinging his eyes, Merlin was alive and well in front of him.

Merlin looked up to them. It was pretty clear that he was startled from the intrusion. "Sir Leon," he said and looked from the Knight to Hanthur, confusion in his eyes. "Who is this?"

"Is Gaius here?" Leon asked instead, ignoring Merlin's question.

Merlin shook his head. "He went to the forest to collect some herbs and won't be back until tonight. Why?"

"This boy claim to be a family friend of Gaius. I just want to confirm the information," he replied and tugged Hanthur's sleeve again. "You will spend your time in the dungeon until he returns."

Merlin stood up. For some reason he just had the urge to stop Leon and have the Knight let the boy stay. "No, that won't be necessary," he said, halting them from walking out any further. "If what he says is true, it wouldn't be wise to treat him like this. He can wait here for Gaius with me."

Hanthur couldn't help but look hopeful. There was so much he wanted to say to Merlin, but where on earth to start?

"No, I'm sorry I can't allow that, Merlin. Without Gaius's confirmation, he doesn't have any legal document for being here in Camelot. Therefore, right now, he is an intruder. That is the law," Leon informed both of them at the same time.

Merlin frowned but nodded at Leon. Then he turned to the boy. "What's your name?"

"Hanthur," Said boy replied. "My name is Hanthur Penny."

"Merlin," he didn't understand why but he felt obligated to introduce himself.

Hanthur smiled sincerely at him. "I know," he said and then added, "Grandmother Alice talks about you." With that, Leon pulled Hanthur out from the clinic, leaving Merlin standing there, dumbstruck.

* * *

Hanthur was sitting in one of the corners of the prison cell in the dungeon, twiddling his thumbs as he waited for dusk to come. During the first hour of his stay in the dungeon he replayed what happened with the Lady of the Lake in his mind. His Merlin had mentioned that she lived in the Lake of Avalon so there must have been a connection somewhere, but what was it? Could the Dark Forest have once been part of the lake, could they be linked? But the questions remained unanswered since he had already travelled back in time. No one here would be able to give him the answers he was looking for.

He huffed and scraped his long fingers through his dark hair. It didn't matter how he got from the future to the past since it was already done. He convinced himself that he needed to concentrate on changing history if he didn't want the people that he loved to die a second time. Their future, _his _future depended on it.

What did he know? So far, he had managed to find out that Uther was still King and his father, Arthur, was just a Prince. He must have travelled at least thirty years back in time, maybe even forty. He couldn't be certain until he knew their ages. He also knew that during the Reign of Uther magic was banned because of the man's own personal hatred. Hanthur knew the story; Uther cast out all magical beings and slaughtered them because Nimueh, a powerful priestess, used magic to help Queen Ygraine conceived an heir. To create a life, another must be exchanged in order to balance the universe. Queen Ygraine died shortly after giving birth to Arthur, something Hanthur could relate to. His Merlin often spoke of how he lived in the shadows protecting Arthur for years before Arthur discovered Merlin's magic. As a result of Merlin's loyalty and how he used magic for good, Arthur brought down the law forbidding magic. Shortly after that, they achieved their destiny by reuniting all of the five kingdoms, Albion, together.

All of their hard work and suffering to build a kingdom of freedom and peace was brought down on the day Mordred brought war into Albion, with Morgana working alongside him.

Morgana. Mordred. He needed to get rid of them _before_ they become a threat to Albion. But even in the past, both of them still had powerful magic while Hanthur had nothing. Going against them without magic would be suicide.

Merlin. Yes! Merlin; he was the most powerful wizard of all time. If he could get Merlin to work with him, then he had a chance to win against Morgana and Mordred. But how could he get Merlin to trust him?

He would have to win over someone that Merlin already trusted, enough so that the warlock wouldn't question anything. But who? Only one name sprang to mind. In order to gain Merlin's trust, he needed Gaius.

The next few hours were spent with his mind going in circles. Should he tell Gaius the truth of his time travel, or should he make a story up about him being the grandson of Alice, the love of Gaius's life? He knew that Gaius would do anything and everything to help him once he had obtained that trust.

Now he just needed to think of a way to make Gaius believe him. Suddenly, he had it! How could he have forgotten about it? He searched his pocket, hoping that he hadn't lost it and as he felt the heaviness of the medallion, a smile split across his face. He pulled it out and looked long and hard at it. It bore the Cornwall seal on it (where his grandmother Ygraine was from). His father gave the medallion to Merlin during their quest to close the Veil when Morgana and Morgause released the Dorocha. Merlin had given it to Hanthur on his ninth birthday. It was only three weeks after that when Merlin had died.

The dungeon cell's door swung open at that very moment and Gaius walked in with Sir Leon. Gaius still appeared very old but younger than he remembered. He looked at Hanthur questioningly.

"Thank you, Sir Leon. I will take it from here," Gaius said firmly and Leon nodded, leaving the cell.

When Gaius was sure that they were alone, he leant forward and studied Hanthur closely. The boy look so much like a younger Arthur that the thought of Uther having another son somewhere in this world came across his mind, but he shook his head and tried not to think about it. "Merlin said you mentioned Alice's name and claimed that you are her grandson. Is that true?"

Hanthur took a deep breath. He could feel his heart thumping against his chest as his mind tried to tell him to keep the pretense up and yet again he reminded himself he needed Gaius's trust to gain Merlin's. "No, I am sorry, I lied about that part, but it was the only way to meet you," he answered honestly.

Gaius looked into the boy's eyes and knew that he wasn't lying. Then he noticed that the boy eyes looked remarkably similar to Merlin's. A very close matches if Gaius had ever seen one. "To meet me? Why do you want to meet me? And how did you know about Alice?"

Hanthur rubbed both of his hands together nervously and took a short breath to gather all of his strength as he turned to face Gaius. "I'm...well..." he tried to be forward and just tell the old man straight out but he just couldn't. Instead, he asked, "Have you ever heard of time travel before?"

The old physician looked at him curiously. "Time travel? What does that have to do with anything?"

"Believe me, it has everything to do with what I'm going to tell you," he said and waited for the old physician to comment. When Gaius didn't say anything, Hanthur continued. "I will explain, but promise me you won't think that I am crazy."

There was a look in Gaius' eyes that Hanthur couldn't quite place, but then the old man nodded. "You have my word that I will hear out whatever you have to say and withhold my judgment."

Hanthur took a deep breath before he blurted out, "I'm from the future."

Gaius didn't blink and he certainly didn't look amused as Hanthur try to smile but failed miserably. The old physician simply turned around and walked out of the door. Panicking, Hanthur yelled, "You've got to believe me! I'm telling the truth! I am from the future!"

He hurried out from the prison cell to go after Gaius, only be tugged back in by the guards. He had to think of something fast, say something that only Gaius knew. Something that would make the old man realizes that he was telling the truth.

"Nimueh! Alice! Balinor! Morgause!" He stopped as Gaius turned to look at him in disbelief. Those were some of the names of the people that Gaius had helped escape from Camelot when Uther declared war against magic. No one should know the names except for Uther, Arthur, and Merlin. Hanthur was certain that none of those three spoke them freely, especially not to strangers.

The old physician walked forward, waving his hand at the guards to let the boy go. "Who are you?" There was slight suspicion in his voice, something that Hanthur wasn't surprised about but hoped he would get past.

"I will tell you when you believe me," he said. "Here," he handed Gaius the medallion, knowing it was the only way to prove his words. "It's the seal of Cornwall. I know there is only one of these and it belonged to Queen Ygraine, but she handed it down to her son, Arthur, before she died."

Gaius took it and with one look he knew that the medallion is genuine. His suspicion deepened "Where did you get this?"

"My...I mean Merlin gave it to me," Hanthur answered hesitantly.

"Merlin?"

"Yes, from the future," he replied, but he could still see that Gaius didn't believe him. Not yet, at least. "I didn't steal it. You can go ask Arthur if he still have his. I can wait here." It was the only thing that he could think of doing, to make Gaius believe without a doubt that he was telling the truth.

Gaius nodded and took the medallion. "I will be back tomorrow if you are telling the truth." Then he left as the guards began to tug Hanthur back into his cell.

* * *

A lot of foods were delivered to the table in Arthur's room. Merlin knew that when there was a lot food like this, Arthur expected his servant to join him for dinner. He knew that his relationship with Arthur was an odd one. They were more than just master and servant, but less than being friends. He really didn't know where to categorize their relationship.

Arthur stormed into his chamber angrier than usual. In moments like this, Merlin knew that Arthur had been arguing with his father, normally over a difference of opinion.

"Two hundred! Two hundred soldiers of Camelot were killed today! And he expects me to lead another two hundred to their death tomorrow!" He shouted and waved his muscular arms around within his armor.

"Well, it does seem like the Pendragon family has a serious case of an illness called 'thick head'," Merlin murmured, removing the cape.

"Merlin," Arthur said warningly, pursing his lips at the same time." Shut up."

Honestly, Merlin felt very guilty over the deaths of the men that were killed in the search for Morgana. Uther had gone against every peace treaty ever made by trespassing into enemy lines and across borders in order to find her. The last time Merlin saw her was when he poisoned her to destroy the source of magic that had put Camelot into a deep sleep. He was already bathing in guilt for poisoning a friend and because of his actions Morgause had been able to take Morgana. To save her life, he hoped. Now he had to bare the weight of the men that died in the search as well.

Swallowing hard he noted, "Well she is his precious ward." He undid Arthur's sword belt as he spoke.

Arthur sighed and turned to face his manservant to let him unclip the breastplate. "I know. She is my friend, well more like a sister, and I care deeply for her but...it's been a year and too many families have lost members in this hopeless search."

Merlin nodded in understanding and finished unclipping the armor. Arthur pulled his chain mail over his head and threw it down where the rest of his armor was now resting. "Why is there so much food?" He asked, making his way to sit on a chair and pulling his plate closer in order to eat.

"I thought you asked the servants to bring it," Merlin said as he began gathering the armor together again.

"Merlin, just because I let you join me for dinner sometimes doesn't mean it's going to be every time."

Merlin scowled at the Prince's accusation. "I didn't ask them to bring it."

"Then who did?"

"I don't know." They went quiet as Merlin organized the armor so he could carry it back to his chambers without dropping any. When he was about to leave, Arthur stopped him by saying, "Where do you think you're going?"

"To polish your armor, what do you expect?"

"Then who is going to help me finish the food?"

"I thought you don't want me to join you."

"Merlin." There was a warning note in Arthur's voice again. Merlin rolled his eyes whilst putting the armor down and taking a seat, facing his Prince. He took a plate and grabbed some cheese, bread, and grapes. He could feel Arthur eyeing him as he ate but when he looked up Arthur looked away, pretending to drink his wine.

"Today, Leon brought in a boy," Arthur started. "He claimed to know Gaius. Do you know anything of it?"

Merlin shook his head, still chewing. After he swallowed it, he answered, "I've never seen him before, and Gaius never mentioned anything about a guest visiting." He didn't mention Alice, knowing Arthur will get suspicious about her escape.

"Do you think he is a fraud?" Arthur took a few sausages and Merlin smiled in amusement as the Prince just ate one after another.

"Gaius knows a lot more people than we do so I'm uncertain."

Arthur nodded in agreement

"He looks a lot like you though," Merlin said, so suddenly that Arthur almost choked on whatever he was about to swallow. "He could almost be your son."

Still coughing, Arthur still managed to give his manservant a dagger glare. "He looked close to our age, you idiot! It's impossible for him to be my child!" Arthur's face went all red and pouty that Merlin couldn't help but laugh out loud. Arthur grabbed a loaf of bread and threw it at Merlin, but he ducked. Unfortunately, the door opened at exactly the same moment and the bread managed to hit Gaius directly in the face. Both of the young men froze at Gaius' displeased expression.

"Oh, Gaius," Merlin stood up quickly, knowing that sitting and dining with the Prince was wrong. He knew Gaius wouldn't mind but the old man had still shown his disapproval after Uther caught them once, worried what would happen to Merlin if they were caught again. "We were-"

Gaius held up a hand to silence his surrogate son. "I don't care, Merlin," he said, reassuring him with a smile before turning his attention to Arthur. Merlin sat back down and continued to eat his dinner. He had to bite his bottom lip just so he wouldn't continue his laughing from earlier. "Sire, I am here to ask if you have lost anything in particular."

Arthur looked to the old physician questioningly. "I don't think I have. Why do you ask?"

Gaius walked around the table. "What about your mother's medallion?"

The Prince stood up and went to open his cabinet. If he was surprised, he had hid it well. He searched through it and then brought something wrapped in a velvet satin cloth over to Gaius. "It's right here," he opened it and sure enough, the medallion was there. "Why?"

Gaius shook his head and said, "I thought I saw something similar to it, that's all."

Arthur nodded, acknowledging the physician's words. Then Gaius walked out from the room without another word. "What was all of that about?" Arthur sat back down and continued with his dinner.

Merlin shrugged and poured himself a cup of water. He drank it all in one gulp and stood up from his chair. "I'll go find out." He was going to go after the old physician but Arthur stopped him yet again "Wait, Merlin!"

Merlin turned back to the Prince.

"Be up here extra early tomorrow and pack some extra clothes. We're going to Cenred's kingdom so it's going to be days, maybe even weeks, before we return to Camelot."

Merlin frowned but then smiled slyly. "Does that mean I don't have to polish your armor?"

"No, it means you're not getting any sleep."

Merlin groaned with pouty lips and grabbed the armor before he could forget and left. When his manservant was gone, Arthur couldn't help but smile to himself. He loved seeing Merlin pout; he just looked so adorable. It was for that very reason why Arthur kept being a prat, just so he could see Merlin's cuteness. He also did request for extra food just so Merlin would join him for dinner. Not that he would ever admit it.

* * *

When Merlin entered the clinic, he saw his mentor sitting on a stool with his glasses on, reading a giant book that lay on the table. "Hey." He put the armor on one of the many tables in the room. "What are you reading?"

Gaius looked up at Merlin as the boy walked over to sit next to him. It was a book of magic, but it was different from the book that Gaius had given to him years ago. It looked very ancient, like it was opened over a hundred times already. "What is this? How come I've never seen it before?"

"It's a magic history book that Alice left here when she last visited," Gaius answered and let Merlin lean over to read the same section as him.

"Time travel?" Merlin queried in astonishment.

Gaius nodded.

"Is it even possible?" Merlin pressed, his curiosity sparked as normal.

"Well, according to the book, it is, but it comes with a lot of sacrifices," Gaius answered, turning another page as he did so.

"Has anyone performed it before?"

"I'm not sure," the old physician said, looking closely at the ancient literature. Then his eyes suddenly became distant as he remembered something from the past.

"What is it?" Merlin asked, nudging his mentor a little bit on the shoulder. Gaius turned to his surrogate son and replied, "A long time ago, when magic wasn't banned in Camelot, Nimueh told me a story that her mother use to tell her. A story of how the first book of the old religion was created and among all the ancient spells in it one was bound to be about time travel. Rumors even said that the first Queen of Camelot used to be a sorceress but she exchanged her magic to travel back in time to help King Bruther end the bloody wars in all the lands."

"What happened to her?"

Gaius shook his head. "Many tell different endings. Some say she returned to her time because if she stayed her soul would not be whole. Others say she died soon after King Bruther fulfilled his destiny. But no one knows for sure."

There was a long silence.

"Why are you suddenly interested in time travel?" Merlin asked, not understanding where all this was coming from. He was used to Gaius researching something magical, but the man normally had a good reason for doing so.

Gaius sighed. "The boy."

"Hanthur?"

He nodded. "He has claimed he is from the future."

* * *

**A/N: **This chapter is a little dark. I didn't mean to make it that way but it just develop into it :/ Well...leave me some lovely comments! Your comments are my push me to write more! See you next time :D


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Merlin (sadly).

**Rated:** M, for good reason...Mpreg :D

******Special Thanks to: **Loopstagirl and Speedy Speck for helping me with the editing :D

**A/N:** Thank you for the lovely comments! Your comments is what inspired me to write so keep it up and I will too. :D

* * *

Chapter 3

Merlin woke up from the heat that was beaming down on his back from the window. He stretched slowly, wondering what time it was, with the realization soon hitting that he must have fallen asleep whilst polishing Arthur's armor, which was still on the table. He jolted up, remembering what Arthur had said, and how specific he had been when it came to polishing his armor that past night and by the look of the sun it wasn't even morning anymore.

He rushed into his room and grabbed one of his leather travelling bags, throwing in whatever clothes that he could find. Just as he was coming back out of his room he froze. Arthur was standing right there, in the middle of the clinic, arms crossed and staring daggers at Merlin.

"Sire…"

"Tell me Merlin, were you born deaf?"

"Merlin shook his head. "No."

"Then what did I tell you to do for today?"

With his hands behind his back, Merlin rocked back and forth on his feet, trying hard to think of an excuse, but nothing came to mind. "Not sleep and polish your armor."

"And?"

"Be up early."

"And what time is it?"

Merlin closed his eyes and reluctantly said, "Late in the afternoon?"

"Then explain yourself!" Arthur's voice thundered through the whole room, making Merlin jump. "What did you do last night that was so important that you couldn't wake me up this morning?"

"Polishing your armor!" Merlin didn't mean to shout back at the Prince but it just came out.

Arthur came forward and Merlin retreated back into his room thinking that the Prince might punch him but he didn't. "My father had to come to my room to wake me up personally! The two hundred soldiers who were appointed for me to lead to Cenred had been standing outside of the castle, waiting for my appearance all morning! Do you know how embarrassing that is?" He shouted angrily, pointing his finger in his manservant's face.

Merlin swallowed. "Then we shouldn't let them wait any longer."

Arthur huffed, frustrated at his manservant's comment. He felt like he just wanted to wrap both of his hands around Merlin's slender neck and strangle him just so he could feel better. But instead he just turned away and said, "Prepare the horses." Then he stormed out.

When the Prince left the clinic Merlin could finally breathe again. He didn't even know that he was holding his breath. For a moment there he really thought Arthur was going to hit him or something. Gaius walked in, looking a little bit startled. "What did you do this time?"

Merlin shook his head. "I'm just late," he said and picked up his bag of clothes that he hadn't realized he'd dropped. "I have to go." He walked around the old physician by the door and out into the corridor. He stopped and said, "Oh and tell me more about the Hanthur's case when I get back, okay?" The physician nodded and Merlin gave him his lopsided smile before jogging off. When he got to the stable, he made his way to saddle the horses. It was going to be a long journey to and from Cenred since he managed to anger Arthur in advance. He couldn't help it; it is one of his many gifts to piss off the royal prat.

* * *

Hanthur was awaked by the creak of his prison cell's door. He was sleeping with his back facing the door so he turned around to find Gaius standing by the entrance with Sir Leon. "You are free to go," the Knight said and left the room when the boy stood up.

"Come," Gaius said and walked out.

Hanthur followed him all the way to the clinic. He was hoping to see Merlin in there but was disappointed when he saw no sign of the wizard. Gaius put a bowl of stew on the table and Hanthur ate it hungrily. It was not that he wasn't fed in the dungeon; they just didn't give him enough food. The old physician also poured the boy a cup of water and added some bread to the stew.

After Hanthur had filled his stomach, Gaius finally came to sit on the opposite side of the table, facing him. "Now, tell me. Who are you?"

He looked at the old physician questioningly. "Are you going to believe me now though?"

Gaius took out the medallion from his pocket and placed it on the table in front of the boy. "In all the noble family members each carry the family's seal medallion but each of those medallion have their secret mark to identify themselves," Gaius said and then pointed at a little butterfly near the corner that Hanthur never realized that it was there. "This is Lady Ygraine's mark. Only I know of this." He looked into Hanthur's eyes intensely and said, "I believe you are telling the truth."

Hanthur huffed in relief as if a large weight had just been lifted off his shoulders. He honestly didn't know what to do next if Gaius didn't believe him. He looked into Gaius's eyes and with a settled breath he finally said, "My real name is Hanthur Pendragon and I am King Arthur's son."

The old physician gape in disbelieved. Now he understood why the boy looked so much like Arthur. "What...what are you here for?" He stammered.

"To stop Mordred and Morgana from destroying Albion," he said plainly, which only earned him a look of confusion from the physician. The mention of Mordred was not so strange, since Merlin did mention something about a prophecy involving him bringing around the end of Arthur, but Morgana? The King's ward?

"Morgana?"

Hanthur nodded. "She found the ancient book of the dark magic. One particular dark spell in it involved absorbing magic. Before Mordred died, Morgana absorbed his magic in order to gain more power."

The physician leans forward, looking at the boy curiously. "What happen to Merlin and Arthur?" Gaius noticed the color in the boy's face drain away and his body started to shake at the question. Hanthur's eyes seemed distant as he recalled the horrible memory. The physician couldn't help it but take the boy's hand and squeeze it. His touch seemed to bring the future Prince back to reality. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked."

He shook his head and gave Gaius a very sorrowful stare. "I never met my father. He died along with Mordred in a battle on the day I was born. Then three weeks after my ninth birthday, Merlin was killed by Morgana," he said and then pursed his lips together and closed his eyes. Gaius regretted asking the question and patted his hand gently. After a few deep breaths, he said, "Mordred." He lightly opened his eyes again as his voice trembled, not with fear but anger. His fingers clenched into a fist and his knuckles whitened. "And Morgana. They are the ones who will bring down Albion. That is why I am here. To prevent it from happening."

There was a long moment of silence.

"Who sent you here?" Gaius asked quietly.

"The Lady of the Lake."

Gaius's face becomes incredulous and his eyes didn't blink. "The Lady of the Lake? She sacrificed herself to send you here?"

Hanthur's eyes narrowed in confused. "What do you mean sacrificed herself?"

"You didn't know?"

"Know what?"

"In order to time travel, it requires two very powerful sorcerers; one will perform the ritual and the other will be the one to travel through time. The sacrifices for this are that the one who travels through time will lose their magic and the one who performs it will die," the physician explained.

Hanthur appear heavy-hearted from the devastating news and he closed his eyes again. "Has Morgana made contact with Morgause yet?" he asked, not opening his eyes.

Gaius had no idea how the boy knew but it seemed to make senses that he is in fact from the future. "Yes," he answered.

"When?"

"A year ago."

Finally opening his eyes, he said, "Meaning she has already learnt to control her magic." But then he turned to Gaius, eyes bewildered. "A year ago?" he asked.

Gaius sighed. "She went missing a year ago after Morgause attacked Camelot. We don't even know if she—" He stopped as Hanthur stood up from his chair, looking afraid. "What is it?"

Hanthur looked around the room frantically. "Where is Merlin?"

Gaius stood up. "He left with Arthur in the afternoon to search for Morgana in Cenred." Hanthur stopped moving and looked up at the old man with fear in his eyes. "What? What's wrong?"

"They will find Morgana there," he said, blinking. "When she returns to Camelot, there will be chaos."

"Chaos? What chaos?"

Hanthur didn't know how to answer. All he knew was that bad things would happen when Morgana returned and one thing he did know was what came first. "The first undead soldiers will rise."

"What? Undead soldiers?"

Hanthur nod.

"How can she do that?"

He didn't know how she would do it but he knew she would succeed in doing it. But when? "I have to stop them," he said and was about to leave the room when Gaius pulled him back. "What?"

"You can't just go out there and stop Arthur from going to Cenred like that."

"Why not?"

"Arthur and Merlin don't know who you are. If you just randomly go out there like that, you will be arrested or even worse killed!"

"But I can't just stand here and do nothing!"

"If you get yourself killed now then all the sacrifices will go to waste!" Gaius said and finally calmed Hanthur down a little bit. The boy sat down again, still looking determined to go. "Just wait until Merlin comes back and we will plan this through together."

Hanthur seemed uncertain as he brought his finger to his mouth and started to bite his nails. "What if he doesn't believe me?"

Gaius put his hand on the boy's shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly. "He will." He went back to sitting when he was sure that the boy was not going to leave the room anymore. "Now, I still need to know how you performed the ritual of the time travel spell when you don't have magic?"

Hanthur shook his head. "I have...well _had_ magic," he replied.

"Arthur married someone with magic?"

He nodded. "He married the most powerful wizard of all time," he answered, hinting.

Gaius's eyes widened in shock. "Merlin?"

Again the boy nodded. "Merlin is my mother...he doesn't like to be called mother since he is a male so I always call him Merlin. I still call him mother when he..." A warm smile curved his lips but said no more.

Gaius nodded, understanding, but out from curiosity he had to ask. "How...how could that even possible?"

He shrugged. "The Gaius in the future told me that during the ancient time, magical creatures always married the same sex and still could conceive children. My father was born from magic and my...mother was born with magic so both of them are basically magical beings," he explained and laughed as he saw Gaius's expression. "I didn't think it was weird since I met so many others like me."

The old physician frowned at the laughing from the boy but he just smiled and let the boy laugh. "Now then, you need to change your clothes," he said and stood up.

The boy stopped laughing and gave the old man a questioning look. "Why?"

"Well, you're meeting with your grandfather. He is dying to meet _my_ grandson," Gaius said and gave the future Prince a sly smile.

Hanthur looked at Gaius in disbelieved. "So you really believe me?"

"I gave you my word from the beginning of this conversation, didn't I?" He said and winked.

Hanthur smiled gratefully before following the old physician into Merlin's room.

* * *

After a vague ambush in the forest of Cenred, Arthur and his army came across Lady Morgana. Her hair was a mess and her dress was all torn and muddy. Even though her appearance looked horrifying she was both happy and relieved when she saw Arthur but fainted shortly after she reached him. Merlin was surprised to see her alive but he couldn't tell if he should be relieved or not. On the way back to Camelot he didn't say a word to anyone as he need to think what he would do if Morgana decided to tell Uther about him poisoning her.

When they returned to Camelot, two weeks had passed. The women and children of Camelot came out to greet the men that left and came home safely. All Merlin wanted to do was go to his room and rest but Arthur ordered him to prepare a bath whilst he went to inform his father about Morgana.

As he was filling the wooden tub with water, he wondered if this would be the last task he'd do for Arthur. He laughed at the thought. He really hoped that his last task for Arthur would be risking his own life to protect the Prince, not preparing him a bath.

"You look rather upset." Arthur's voice made him jump and turn around, seeing the Prince walk behind the privacy screen to take off his clothes. "We found her and only lost six men. You should be a little bit grateful."

Merlin was too tired and had too many thought that he didn't reply. When Arthur didn't hear anything, he thought his manservant had left the room but when he came out Merlin was still there, looking like a statue. "Why are you so quiet?" he asked.

The young warlock smiled wearyingly and shook his head. "Is there anything you need, sire?" he asked.

Arthur didn't want Merlin to leave since they hadn't really talked the last few days but he understood that he was tired. "Tell George to come here after an hour with my dinner and to clear my bath water. Then you can go on ahead to rest."

Merlin was too tired to even acknowledge the fact that Arthur has given him the rest of the day off. He just nodded and went to find George, who was mucking out the stables, and tell the servant Arthur's orders. Then he went to the clinic. He hoped to talk to Gaius before going to sleep but the old physician was nowhere to be found. He went to sit in one of the many chairs in the clinic and wait for his mentor. After just a few minutes of sitting, the door opened and the boy, Hanthur, walked in with a basket of bread and fruits.

The boy smiled happily as he spotted Merlin and closed the door behind him as he made his way to the warlock. "Merlin, you're back," he greeted merrily and pulled Merlin into a hug. At this point, the warlock was too tired to even react to the boy's action. He pulled back and said, "It's me, Hanthur."

"I'm glad you're out of the dungeons." The warlock tried to smile but failed miserably. He had never felt so exhausted before but it had been two weeks since he'd gotten a proper sleep. "I'm sorry, Hanthur, I'm just a little bit tired."

Hanthur shook his head. "No, you don't have to be sorry. If you're tired then you should go to sleep."

He nodded and made his way to his room. "Where is Gaius anyways?" he asked and then realized there was a futon on the floor, covered with books and notes about potions. One book was Merlin's magic book.

"I don't know. He told me to make a few deliveries for him. I just got back, really," Hanthur answered as he was transferring the bread and fruits into two different bowls. "Oh," he walked in to see Merlin standing in the middle of his room, looking at the futon. "I did sleep on your bed the first week but only until I could afford to buy the futon. I hope you don't mind."

Merlin bent down to pick up the magic book and Hanthur just realized he'd forgotten to put it away. "I'm sorry. I really did mean to put it back," he said honestly.

"You know magic?" the young warlock asked.

"No, I don't but I know you know magic, you were born with it," he said smiling, but Merlin was not amused.

"Did Gaius tell you?"

"No, of course not," the future Prince said and then he realized that Merlin didn't know anything about him. "I can explain." He was about to continue when Gaius came in and interrupted them.

"He knows because he is in fact from the future," the physician said.

Merlin looked from the old man to the boy, studying them carefully. "Are you sure?" he asked and Gaius nodded. He took his book and put it back where he had hidden it before. He turned back to them. "How?"

"I traded my magic in order to travel back," Hanthur answered simply.

The young warlock frowned. "I know that but how do _you_-" he pointed to Gaius, "-know that he is telling the truth and that this is not something he cooked up with to destroy Camelot?"

Gaius sighed and nodded. "Hanthur, show him the medallion."

Hanthur went over to his futon and searched through a bag that he had bought a few days ago and took out the Cornwall medallion. "This belonged to my mother," he said and handed it to Merlin. The heaviness of it was proof that it was not a fake but real. "He...I mean she gave it to me on my birthday." At same moment both of the boys looked up to each other and shared a heartfelt stare. "It belonged to King Arthur's mother. He gave it to his...wife years before he was...killed."

The word killed attracted Merlin's attention and he stared at the boy "Killed? Arthur is going to die?" Gaius frowned to the fact that from all the future Prince had said, his surrogate son had only caught Arthur's death. Both of them waited until the warlock processed all of what the boy had say, when his eyes opened wider they knew Merlin had finally caught up. "You're Arthur's son?"

Hanthur nodded.

"No wonder you look like him, well, except the eyes—your mother's eyes then?" asked Merlin oblivious to the fact that the boy had the same eyes as him. Hanthur's lips tightened with a smile and he nodded. "Is she Gwen?"

One of Hanthur's eyebrows quirked questioningly. "Gwen? No, she is not my mother."

"Really?" Merlin said in disbelief and took a seat on his bed. "They seem to be so in love."

The boy moved forward. "Arthur was in love with Gwen?"

"Well, they're together now, secretly," he said matter-on-fact. "Why? Who is your mother?"

Hanthur backed away and looked to Gaius and then backs to the warlock. "She is a wonderful...person."

Merlin took off his jacket. "What's her name?"

"I don't think you know her...yet."

"Oh," the warlock said and then shrugged. "Arthur is a handsome lad, whoever he ended up marrying is probably pretty lucky."

Hanthur smiled. "Yeah." Then there it was again, as Merlin gazed up to the boy and both of them shared another heartwarming feeling.

"Anyways," Merlin broke the staring match and turned to Gaius. "I need to speak to you." Then he turned to the boy. "Hanthur, it's lovely to meet you but can you please give us some time alone?"

"Why? It's not like I'm telling anyone. I mean I know you are a sorcerer already."

"But this matter is personal," Merlin said sternly.

Hanthur want to protest but Gaius grabbed the boy's shoulder and shook his head. He sighed and with a nod, he left the room. When both of the physician and warlock was certain that the future Prince was no longer in the clinic, Merlin turned to his surrogate father. "Did you talk to her?"

"She's sleeping right now."

"Did she say anything about me?" he asked, worrying.

"Not yet."

"Well, she's going to," he said and was positive she would.

Gaius glowered at Merlin. "Does she know about your magic, Merlin? Does she know you have magic?"

The warlock shook his head. "No, she doesn't—no one does."

"Good. That's good," he said, backing away. "Because if Uther finds out—"

"She knows that I tried to poison her. She knows that."

"You had no choice," Gaius reminded him. "Camelot was dying. Morgana was the source of the enchantment. Either you poison her or Camelot fell."

"But Uther won't know that. All she'll say is I tried to poison her."

"We can't be sure, Merlin," the physician said and walked out from the warlock's room.

Merlin followed him. "What do you think Uther will do to me?"

Gaius didn't turn to face his surrogate son; he couldn't show him that he was in fact worried about what would happen. Straightening his face, he turned to Merlin. "Let's just wait and see what tomorrow brings."

* * *

Hanthur was sitting on the stairs outside next to a dog statue, twirling his thumbs like he always did when he was thinking. He was very happy that it was going according to plan, to gain Merlin's trust through Gaius, but what was he going to do next? Morgana was back in Camelot and he knew something bad was going to happen, but he couldn't prevent it since he still didn't know what she was planning. So he waited. He scraped his long fingers through his dark hair as he sighed, feeling defeated.

Sir Leon had just finished his duties for the day and was leaving the castle when he saw Hanthur. He was surprised that this young man was Gaius's grandson since he looks nothing like the old physician, but the boy could have inherited his looks from his parents. He could see that the boy was frustrated with something. He decided to walk down the stairs and sit next to him. Hanthur looked startled to see him and edged away a little from the Knight; it was understandable since their first meeting wasn't the best. "I didn't get a chance to properly apologize to you for my actions," he started.

"It isn't your fault. You were just doing your duty," Hanthur said, understandingly. "Besides, I'm going to live here from now on so we might as well get along, right?" He smiled reassuringly and earned a return smile from the Knight.

"So, do you have any experience with sword fighting from where you are from?" Leon asked.

Hanthur shrugged. "I learn a little from here and there."

"Want to spar with me?"

"Sure," he said.

Leon stood up and looked down to the boy. "Let's get you under some armor first."

"No need," he said confidently as he stood up and brushed the dust from his trousers.

Leon was fascinated by the boy's courage and walked down a step from the stairs to level himself with him. "Are you sure? I am not going to go easy on just because you are younger than me."

Hanthur smiled bravely. "I promise you by the end of our match, you won't land a scratch on me." He turned and walked towards the training ground.

The Knight watched the boy and notice that from behind, Hanthur looked so much like Arthur. He shook his head from the thought and followed the younger man. When he got to the training ground, there weren't many knights around anymore. He took off his armor and chain mails in order to fight Hanthur fairly, as the boy went to pick his sword. Then he unsheathed his own sword and went into the middle of the large field. Within a few minutes, Hanthur joined him.

"Are you ready?" asked the Knight.

Hanthur held up one of his hands to silence the Knight. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. As he exhaled gently, he felt like time had slowed down and concentrated all of his senses to his surroundings. Slowly, he moved his limbs into a fighting stance as he gently opened his eyes to face the Knight before him. "Ready," he said, almost a whisper.

The stance was unfamiliar to Leon but he readied himself in his own style of fighting stance. As they both had a staring match, Hanthur decided to make the first move and lunged towards the Knight. Leon dug his feet into the ground and waited for Hanthur to arrive. As Hanthur strikes, Leon parried and swirled around the boy to land a strike on his back but Hanthur turned in time with his sword and both their swords clashed together. Leon twirled his sword to disconnect their swords, only to raise it up high and bring it down on Hanthur's. The boy quickly changed the grip of his holding and used all his strength and swung his sword upwards to meet with the Knight's with full force. Leon's sword slipped from his hand and it flew a few feet away as Hanthur placed his sword to the Knight's neck. He stumbled back a little, amaze by the boy's strength. The other knights watch in disbelieved that Sir Leon was defeated.

Hanthur huffed out and blinked as he realized that he had defeated the Knight. Instead of feeling proud, he felt ashamed. It was like he had cheated since he knew Leon's every move. "I'm sorry," he said and dropped his own sword and walked away before the Knight could say anything.

Meanwhile from a distance, Arthur's window lay open as he watched the events. The other knights might not have noticed but the Prince did. Not many knew about Leon's techniques but somehow this boy did. He was curious to know how.

* * *

When Hanthur came back into the clinic, Gaius was eating his dinner at one of the tables, reading as usual. He put down the book when he heard the boy come in. "You're back. Are you hungry?" he asked and stood to get the boy a bowl of chicken and vegetable soup, even though Hanthur haven't given him an answer yet.

He came to sit next to the physician and looked towards the door of Merlin's room. "Is he asleep?"

Gaius nodded and the boy frowned. "He is very tired from the rescue mission. You will have time to talk to him tomorrow," he said and gave his shoulder a squeeze before going back to his giant book of potions. "Now eat your dinner."

Hanthur took a spoonful of soup before turning to the physician. "I had a match with Sir Leon a while ago and I won but I don't feel good about it."

Gaius put down his book again and paid his full attention to the boy. "Why?"

He shrugged and took another spoonful of soup. "I was taught how to fight by all the knights from my father's round table; the ones that survived from the great purge. I couldn't defeat the Leon in the future but this Leon is...well, not as strong yet. I feel like I..."

"Cheated," Gaius finished and the boy nodded with shame written all over his face. He let out a sigh. "Well, it couldn't be helped that you were more aware of these things. You know things that no one does."

"It still doesn't feel good," he said, sounding like Merlin.

The physician smiled, noticing the similarities. Hanthur may have looked like Arthur but he seemed to have inherited Merlin's personality. "Well at least you have a good sense of what is right and wrong."

"What should I do?"

"Just be yourself."

Hanthur nodded agreeably. "I should apologize to Sir Leon."

"Well, he probably wouldn't even understand what you apologized for, Hanthur. Sir Leon is not the type to envy people, he is kind and he only acknowledges people who are destined for greatness," Gaius said thoughtfully.

Finally, Hanthur smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Gaius," he said and finished the rest of the soup. "I'm going to bed." He put the bowl on the table and stood up. He was half way to Merlin's room when he turned to the physician who had already turned his attention back to the book. "Good night."

Gaius waved airily and said, "Good night."

As he entered into the room, he found Merlin sleeping on his futon leaving the bed to Hanthur. All the giant books on potions were neatly stacked on the table by the window. He smiled warmly and took off his boots and slides into the bed and fell asleep.

* * *

**A/N:** Leave some of your loves for me :D


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Merlin (sadly).

**Rated:** M, for good reason...Mpreg :D

**Special Thanks to: **Loopstagirl and Speedy Speck for helping me with the editing :D

**A/N:** Okay! Thank you for all the lovely comments! Sorry that this chapter take a little longer. I want the relationship between the characters to develop a little bit.

* * *

Chapter 4

The sun was still hiding slightly behind the horizon when a slim and short figure in a dark blue cape and a large hood, which cover their face, moved through the street of Camelot, almost as if they were gliding. They walked to a small house behind the market and knocked on a door. A skinny bald man, still in his nightwear, opened the door and gasped.

"Evelyn!" He said happily. The person removed her hood to reveal long, platinum-blond hair and a pair of green cat eyes. He pulled her into an embrace.

She happily accepted it with a smile.

"Hello, Uncle Alton," she greeted pleasantly.

He pulled back and let her inside. "How is your mother?" he asked as he led her over to a nearby chair, gesturing for her to take a seat.

"She is well," Evelyn answered gracefully. "But did you do what I ask?"

The man nodded as he poured her a cup of water. "Sir Leon will be going with Prince Arthur on a hunt tomorrow. They will leave at midday. He will not be aware of the aphrodisiac that was put into his water pouch." He showed her the leather pouch.

She nodded understandingly as he moved to get a bundle of clothes, which he then preceded to hand, to her. "These servant clothes are enchanted. When you wear them, no one will see you as a woman, but a man. I will send word to Sir Leon that I can't make it and place you as my substitution for the hunt."

She smiles mischievously and caressed his cheek. "Thank you, Uncle."

He bowed gratefully.

* * *

Hanthur was running around town all morning, delivering potions and medicines for Gaius. He even picked up some fresh bread rolls and fruits for breakfast. He was on his way back to the castle when he ran into a chocolate-coloured woman and made her fall down. Luckily, his breads and fruits were in his red leather bag instead of a basket or else they would have been rolling down the dirt road by now. But the woman dropped her flowers and apples.

"I'm sorry," he apologized and helped her up before starting to pick up the flowers and apples running down the street.

"No, no, it wasn't completely your fault," she bent down and helped. "I wasn't looking where I was going."

He smiled and quickly finished picking up the belongings. It was only then that he realized the woman was the same one his father was talking to on his first day in Camelot.

"Hi, I'm Hanthur." It only seemed right that he introduce himself.

"I'm Guinevere, but you can call me Gwen," she answered, smiling sweetly.

Hanthur's smile faltered. How could he not have realized that this was Gwen sooner? But he couldn't help it; the Gwen that he remembered had a burn mark on the right hand side of her face and a large scar on the left, just under her jaw. This Gwen was so beautiful, with smooth flawless skin. Hanthur could only wonder who would dare to ruin such beauty, and it made him tense slightly. Slowly, he smiled again, not wanting to arouse suspicion."It's lovely to meet you, Gwen," he said graciously and kissed her hand.

She smiled shyly with a curtsy and walked pass him, heading toward the castle. He turned to follow her. "Are you going to the castle?"

"Mm hmm," she answered. He couldn't help but note that the sweet smile was still plastered on her face. "Are you going there too?"

"I live there. I'm the Court Physician's grandson," he replied.

She stopped and stared at the boy with wide-eyes. "Really? Gaius has a grandson?"

He nodded, smiling softly. "Yeah, I didn't know I was his grandson until just a month ago."

"And you're not mad at him? I mean...not that you should be because you shouldn't. Gaius is a wonderful man but I don't know if he is to you-"

Hanthur laughed, "No, I'm not upset to find out that Gaius is my grandfather. Quite the opposite actually. I'm just glad that I have a family member left," he said, enthusiastically. "Seems like you are fond of my grandfather."

They continued on walking towards the castle. "Well, he is very kind," she said.

He nodded. "He is indeed," he agreed. "So why are you going to the castle? To do your royal duties as a lady of the court, I assume?"

She smiled flatteringly. "No, I'm not a lady of the court."

He looks at her questioning. "No?"

She shook her head. "I'm a maid."

"A maid?" he almost choked on his own words. He couldn't believe that a beauty like Gwen could be nothing but a maid. "I thought you were a lady of the court."

"Nope," she said with a disappointed shrug. "Just a maid but my Lady is very kind and I'm very thankful for her."

"Your Lady?"

"The Lady Morgana. I'm so glad that they finally found her yesterday. I was so worried—," She was still talking but her voice faded away as his mind started to process the information. Morgana seemed to have strings attached to everyone that he was trying to save. He remembered _his_ Gwen and her son. He lived with them for year in a hidden village in a forest. She was so kind to him despite her scars. It angered him greatly as he remembered how she and her son had both died. "—so that is why I'm heading over there." Her voice pulled him back to reality again and he realized that they had arrived inside the castle whilst Gwen had been talking.

"Well, Hanthur, it was a pleasure to meet you," Gwen said. He gave her a nod with a smile and she turned on her heel and left, his eyes watching her as she did so, clouded with painful memories of what was still to come.

He turned towards the east quarter of the castle, towards the physician's quarters. He had to find Merlin and warn him about Morgana. When he entered, Gaius was treating a patient, whom seemed to have a broken forearm. "Gai—Grandfather, where is Merlin?"

"Prince Arthur requested his presence in Morgana's room," said the physician without so much as looking up from where he was working.

Hanthur's face faltered and he walked out from the clinic to find his mother.

* * *

Merlin came out from Morgana's room in relief. He could hardly believe that she was such an understanding person. A smile curved on his lips as the weight of guilt finally lifted from his shoulders. For a good five minutes, he just breathed in and out joyously. Then he made his way to the kitchen to get the Prince's breakfast as fast as possible.

When he arrived inside Arthur's room, the Prince was standing by the window looking down to the training ground. He heard his manservant and turned his attention away from outside to what was happening in the room.

"Did you sleep well?" the Prince asked as he made his way to the chair by the table. Merlin placed the platter of foods and a plate with silverwares on the table and went to make the bed.

"Yes," he answered.

"Good then that means-"

"Clean your room, polish your boots and armors, and probably many more chores that you will name for the fifteen minutes that I am going to be here whilst collecting your dirty laundry," he said sardonically with a smile at the Prince as he finish with the bed.

Arthur scowled at his manservant. "Well, since you insist you may do those chores and finish within one hour," he said, taking a drink from his cup of water. Merlin was going to protest but the Prince cut him off. "And as for the many chores that you want me to assign you will be saddling the horses, preparing the tent, and the hunting gear. We are going to go on a hunt for a few days."

Merlin looked at him in disbelief. After the "banging each other with blunt weapons" tournaments that the Kingdom had every month, he hated hunting the most next to that. The weather was unpredictable, the ground was always muddy, and they always seemed to run into dangerously oversized creatures that wouldn't even be edible. "But we just got back," he complained, finishing picking up the clothes on the floor.

"Yes and my father is holding a banquet for Morgana's safe return in a few days. We will need meats for the occasion," he said in a matter-of-fact way. "Did you forget my sausages again?"

"Well, I thought that you might need to lose a little fat around your thighs." Merlin shot back, the teasing smile already on his face as he turned to walk away. He didn't stay for Arthur to start throwing things at him, but simply picked up the clothes and left. He could hear Arthur's voice thundering his name from the chamber but he just burst out laughing and kept on walking. As he walking down the stairs, he met Gwen coming up with flowers and apples.

"Hello, Merlin," she greeted.

He smiled at her. "Hi, Gwen," he responded cheerfully. "Going to Morgana's?"

She nodded. "Have you seen her yet?"

"Yes."

"Is she doing well?"

It was his turn to nod. "Still shaking from the event but she is fine," he answered. "Well, I've got to go. It's going to be a long day."

"Arthur?"

"Yep."

She covered her mouth as she let out a cute giggle as Merlin continued down the stairs.

"Oh," she called, stopping him from walking any further. "I met Gaius's grandson. He is a very sweet boy."

Merlin just nodded, acknowledging her words but kept on walking towards the clinic. He did feel a little guilty that he hadn't had the chance to speak to the boy properly. He was just so exhausted from the night before that he fell asleep before the boy came back and when he woke, the boy was already up and gone. With the hunt coming up in just a few hours, he wasn't sure if he going to have the chance to talk to the time travel boy.

"Merlin," his name was called cheerfully from his right side and as he turned, two hands grabbed some of Arthur's dirty clothes from him before he noticed that it was Hanthur. The time travel boy was smiling lopsidedly at him. "I was looking for you."

"What a coincidence, I was about to come looking for you," the warlock said honestly.

Hanthur looked away shyly. "Really? Why?"

"Well, to be honest there are a lot of things, you need to explain to me why you're here for a start," said the warlock, opening the door to the clinic for them to enter. They put the clothes in a pail. Merlin whispered a spell and bubbling water started to rise in the pail. Hanthur watched on, amused, and Merlin was enjoying the fact that there was someone else in the room who could appreciate the magic with him. Then, with another whisper of a spell, the clothes started to wash themselves. "So explain to me why you are here?" Merlin pressed, wanting answers.

Hanthur wanted to tell his mother about Morgana but he feared that he would not believe him. "Well, what would you like to know?" he asked instead.

The warlock looked at him curiously with his arms crossed across his chest.

"Well, Gaius told me that in order to perform a time travel ritual you will need to sacrifice your magic. I don't believe that you would sacrifice it just for fun. So, why did you come back?" Merlin said slowly, his eyes searching for answers in Hanthur's face.

"Will you believe me if I tell you?"

Merlin studied the boy closely and nodded.

"I want to prevent Albion from falling."

"Albion was destroyed?" To say that Merlin looked astonished was an understatement.

Hanthur nodded. "Seventeen years from now, my father will be killed by Modred and Albion will fall to the hands of Morgana."

"Morgana?" Merlin was even more surprised at this bit of information than the fall of Albion or Arthur's death. Then his face looked distant as he remembered something the great dragon had said to him a long time ago.

"She will betray Arthur?" he asked absently.

The boy nodded his head, unsure if the warlock believed him or not. He knew that he had to tell Merlin of his upcoming death, but his mouth went dry. Swallowing, he eventually spoke. "Merlin, she kills you."

Suddenly, Merlin's eyes fix on the boy's and gave him a stern look. "She kills me?"

Without faltering, Hanthur said, "Yes."

He moved closer to the warlock. "And there is more. Morgana is in an alliance with Morgause right now. They are planning to take over Camelot."

"Taking over Camelot? But I thought you just said it won't happen for another seventeen years."

"Yes, but that is when Morgana allies herself with Modred. Right now, she is with Morgause," Hanthur explained. "Look, just think about it. Morgana was gone for a year after you...poisoned her-"

He stopped when Merlin looked at him in disbelief. No one knew about the poisoning, except Gaius.

"Gaius didn't tell me," Hanthur said, as if he read the warlock's mind. "You did actually...from the future. You tell me stories of all the enemies that you and Arthur defeated in your long journey together."

Merlin looked hesitant. "Tell me one thing that only I know and Gaius doesn't." He practically ordered, clearly not convinced.

The boy exhaled and then said, "The Lady of the Lake of Avalon was your first love." Merlin was about to protest but Hanthur continued.

"Her name was Freya. She was cursed by a powerful sorceress when she accidentally killed the witch's son in self-defense. She turned into a monster call the Bastet on the stroke of midnight and has the desire to kill. She obtained a fatal injury from Arthur and died in your arms near the Lake of Avalon. That is how she became the Lady of the Lake." After Hanthur finish his explanation, Merlin just stood there, staring at the boy. Merlin remembered mentioning to Gaius that he freed the druid girl but he never did tell the physician her name or how she died. "Now do you believe me?" Hanthur asked quietly.

"Does Morgana hate me?" Merlin didn't answer Hanthur's question, but instead replied with one of his own.

Hanthur didn't know if he should be relieved or not but he couldn't help but smile. He quickly replaced it with a serious face before the warlock noticed. "I guess…since she does blame you for turning her evil."

"What? She did that herself when she agreed to become the source for the enemy." The shocked look was back on Merlin's face.

"Yes, I know that! She is a coward, just like her father, putting the blame on someone else for their mistakes!" Hanthur said angrily.

The wizard looked at the boy in confusion. "What? Sir Gorlois wasn't a coward. He died bravely in a war."

Hanthur shook his head. "Morgana's real father is Uther," he said and Merlin gaped at him, looking lost for words. "She is Arthur's half-sister."

Merlin's gape became wider. "Are you serious?"

He nodded.

The wizard shifted his eyes from Hanthur, still appalled. "Then that makes a lot of sense. Uther didn't want to call off the search because she is his daughter," the warlock said, aghast as all of the pieces slotted together in his mind.

"And now that Morgana and Morgause are allied together, they are going to try to-,"

"Overthrown Uther and Arthur," Merlin finished and Hanthur nodded again.

There was a long silence.

"We have to tell Arthur," said Hanthur.

Merlin shook his head. "He would never believe us."

"Why not?"

"Because she is the King's ward and we...well, you're new in Camelot and I'm just a servant. Our words don't count for anything."

"Surely, there must be something we can do." Hanthur cried, frustrated. He couldn't have come all this way for nothing.

Merlin smiled. "Yeah, you keep an eye on Morgana's every move whilst I protect the royal prat."

"How am I going to do that?" Hanthur protested.

"Well, you are Gaius's grandson. You can make delivery."

"And?"

"Well, you're smart, think of something."

Hanthur frowned.

A knock on the door interrupted them just before a Knight walked in. "Merlin, Hanthur, Prince Arthur has requested both of your presences in his chamber.

* * *

"You want me to go to the hunt with you?" Hanthur asked, obviously in shock at the Prince's request. Arthur was standing in the middle of the room while Merlin dressed him. Hanthur was standing by the table, still looking confused. "Why?"

"Well, I saw you fight with Sir Leon yesterday and I was impressed. Since you are the grandson of our Court Physician, I'm considering recruiting you into Camelot knighthood," Arthur explained as he opened his arms to let Merlin slip the red leather jacket on him. "The hunt will be some sort of test."

Hanthur would have felt proud if it weren't for the fact that he sort of cheated. "I don't think I can."

The Prince looked at the boy questioningly and the warlock gave him a weird look that he couldn't make out from where he was standing.

"Why is that?" Arthur asked as he moved closer to the boy curiously.

"Well, I thought..." he paused as he saw Merlin doing a weird dance behind Arthur and looked back to the Prince. "I need some time to think?" He said, giving Merlin a questioning look.

Arthur looked back to his manservant to see why the boy kept looking at him. Merlin quickly stood still with a suspicious smile. The Prince slowly turned back to Hanthur and patted the boy on the shoulder. "Nonsense. You're leaving with us so be ready by midday." Then he left the room.

Merlin walked up to him. "Idiot, why did you reject his offer?"

"What? I don't want to be a Knight!"

Merlin sighed in frustration. "Look, if you become a Knight, the royal court would listen to your words. I'm pretty sure Morgana cannot bring down Camelot by herself. Knowing her, she will have to bring in some help. So if that happens, you can help get rid of them by being a Knight."

Hanthur nodded acknowledging. "Great idea."

The warlock smiled. "Now, you go pack our clothes whilst I'm packing for the royal prat," he led the boy to the door. "And remember you need to impress Arthur."

Hanthur smiled and nodded as he left the room. Then he stopped in the middle of the corridor as he realized that he just spend twenty minutes in the same room with both of his parents. He felt very happy but at the same time very sad too. He never imagined in his whole life that he would have both of his parents back and it was very overwhelming.

He must have been standing there for a good five minutes before continuing his way back to the clinic. He took a turn to another corridor and froze as he saw Arthur lean down and place a kiss on Gwen's lips. As he saw his father kiss the maid, he felt a hand clench around his heart. His eyes narrowed angrily and his hands balled into fists tightly. He was about to bolt over when a strong hand grasped his forearm and pulled him away. He looked up and realized that it was Gaius who was pulling him in another direction; the longer way to the clinic.

"Why!" Hanthur screamed and kicked a box of empty vials as soon as the physician closed the door. "How could he kiss another woman?! How could he do this to Merlin?!"

"Don't be ridiculous, Hanthur. He doesn't know that he will be marrying Merlin in the future."

"Well, he should. Merlin has been by his side all these years! Shouldn't he consider loving him!"

"It is not the time yet!"

"Well, when will it be the time?" Hanthur demanded, anger coursing through him.

"I don't know, Hanthur, but you have to keep in mind that this is not in your time. Whatever happens between Merlin and Arthur, it hasn't happened yet! You need to keep your emotions under control!" the physician said warningly.

Hanthur felt so furious and betrayed that tears threatened to fall from his eyes but he wouldn't let them. His teeth clenched and his lips tightened as he tried to calm down but he couldn't. "I need fresh air." With that, he walked out from the clinic, slamming the door behind him.

As he walked around the castle at full speed, the image of his father kissing the maid keep haunting him and only made him angrier. He went over to the training ground and picked up a sword from the table. The Knights looked at him curiously as he challenged Sir Miles.

* * *

When Merlin went to gather food supplies for the hunt, the cook told Merlin that Gaius's grandson challenged Sir Miles and both of them ended up wounded. Despite the fact that he was worrying about the boy, he did finish packing the food before running towards the clinic. As soon as he got inside his eyes immediately searched for Hanthur, but he was nowhere in sight. Sir Miles was unconscious on the patient's bed with Gaius treating three nasty slashes on his chest. "Where is Hanthur?"

The physician nodded his head to the wizard's room. Merlin sighed and was about to go into the room but Gaius stopped him.

"He hurt his hands," he said and handed his surrogate son a pallet of ointment. "Sir Miles already assured me that he won't do anything to Hanthur since it was a fair fight." Merlin nodded in relief before he put the ointment into his pocket and went to get a bucket of water and a washcloth.

When he entered his room, he found Hanthur sitting on the bed with his head down and his elbows resting on his knees, his bleeding hands clasped together. He had an angry look plastered on his face but there were tears in his eyes that looked as if they were threatening to fall. Merlin closed the door softly behind him and put down the bucket of water next to the bed. Then he reached for the strips of white cloth sitting on top of his cabinet. The boy didn't even look when he went to sit next to him.

"Are you all right?" Merlin asked, taking the boy's hand and starting to clean the blood away. "Tell me. What happened?"

Hanthur's lips trembled as he finally let his tears fall freely. "I saw my father...kiss another woman other than my mother," he said and suddenly guilt threatened to overwhelm him. "I didn't mean to hurt Sir Miles but I was just so angry." He clenched his hands again.

"Don't do that!" Merlin shouted as the boy's hands start to bleed again. Hanthur obeyed and unclenched his hands and let the wizard clean it again.

"Well Hanthur," he began, keeping an eye on the boy as he cleaned the wounds. "You can't act like this whenever Arthur does something like that."

"Why not?" He demanded and finally turned to look at the warlock.

Merlin shot Hanthur a warning look and the boy backed down ashamed. The warlock continued cleaning the wounds.

"Arthur hasn't met your mother and they haven't fallen in love yet. You can't go and expect your father to be faithful to someone that he hasn't even met or loved. When the time comes, I know he will be a great husband to her so you need to stop your childish behavior," Merlin said seriously. "I don't want you to get yourself killed." He threw the bloody wash cloth into the water and pulled out the ointment pallet. He smoothly put the ointment on the boy's hands. "You need to ask Sir Miles for forgiveness." He started to wrap the injuries.

Hanthur sighed, yet strangely, he had calmed down. "I know," he said and looked down at the person who would someday be his mother. "I'm sorry."

The wizard glanced at him and smiled. "You are forgiven. Just don't do it again," Merlin said almost sternly and stood up. "I'm going to tell Arthur that you won't be able to make it to the hunt."

The boy jolted up. "Why not?"

"You are injured," Merlin answered evenly.

"I can still hunt."

"Not with those injuries."

Hanthur stood up. "I need to be a Knight in order to help us go against Morgana."

"You can prove yourself to Arthur at some other time. I will not let an injured person go on a hunt. Your injury might get infected."

"I am tired of waiting. I can do this!"

"No, you can't!"

"I'm going anyway." He shot the wizard a determined look that reminded Merlin so much of Arthur that he couldn't help but smile.

"Fine," Merlin gave in and unexpectedly Hanthur pulled him into a tight embrace just as Arthur walked in on them.

The Prince looked surprised but eventually became curious with his head tilted when Merlin pushed the boy away. "Well, I didn't know you played for the other side, Merlin."

Merlin shook his head. "No no, you got this all wrong."

Arthur grinned at the warlock amusingly. "Hey, it's okay. I'm not judging you or anything. I'm just sorry I interrupted you," he teased and walked out. "When you have finished, come out because we're leaving."

"No, wait, Arthur!" Merlin shouted, frustrated, but the Prince just laughed as he walked out from the clinic. Gaius gave both of the boys a questioning look. Hanthur covered his mouth to muffle his laughter but stopped as Merlin glared down at him.

"What? It's not like I knew he was coming in," he said innocently.

The warlock looked at a loss and shook his head.

* * *

Sir Leon approached the stable to meet his new temporary servant that his personal manservant, Alton, assigned. Alton couldn't attend the Knight for the hunt due to some contagious sickness. His temporary servant looked rather young, maybe only seventeen or eighteen years old. He was very skinny and short in height, with dark hair and green cat-eyes. He smiled as soon as he saw his master. He straightened up and did a two finger salute. "Hello, my lord, my name is Evan and I will be your manservant for this hunt," he introduced himself cheerfully.

The Knight smiled kindly at the young lad. "Well, is everything ready?"

"Yes," he chirped.

Leon got onto his horse and turned to him. "Then let's go."

Evan nodded and got onto his horse. As he rode his horse behind the Knight, she smiled mischievously as everything seemed to be going according to plan.

* * *

Arthur had been studying Hanthur's movements ever since they arrived in the forest. He was astounded by the boy's hunting skills. It was like he had been born to hunt or something. The first hour, Hanthur killed over three doe and the rest of the hours seemed like a competition between him and the boy. By the end of the fourth day, Arthur had killed more than the boy, but it still didn't cease to amaze the Prince what a great hunter Hanthur was—not that he would ever admit it.

As the Prince was about to walk into his tent, he saw Merlin pat Hanthur on the shoulder, smiling. The acts between Merlin and the boy made Arthur have a feeling that he wasn't aware of before. It was like he was becoming very aggravated and wanted to shove the boy away from his manservant. What he saw that morning, when Merlin was holding the boy, really surprised the Prince but he didn't think anything of it because Merlin was always kind, and he would always comfort his friends. However, during the hunt, Merlin seemed to worry not for Arthur's safety but Hanthur's. His manservant's unusual behavior towards the boy really made the Prince infuriated. Shaking his head, he just ignored the feelings and went into his tent. Merlin had already set up the table and had placed the foods on it. He wanted his manservant to join him for dinner but it seemed the warlock wanted to have dinner with the boy.

Leon's temporary manservant, Evan, handed the Knight his plate of food. "Will that be all, my lord?" he asked.

"Yes, yes, you may go," Leon said and joined Merlin and Hanthur by the fire. Without anyone noticing Evan moved into Sir Leon's tent and took the water pouch from his baggage and switched it with the one Alton had given him.

"Where did you learn how to hunt?" Leon asked, sitting next to Hanthur.

Hanthur shrugged. "I'm from a poor family. Hunting is something we do."

"Really?"

He nodded, smiling.

"What about your sword techniques?" he asked.

Hanthur shot the Knight a daringly stare but the Knight didn't appear to be interrogating him but only being curious.

"I...I have five uncles who happen to be very good with swords. They even used to joke that they wanted to become Knights one day," he lied and shifted his stare away from the Knight again.

"What happen to them?"

"They died, killed by an evil sorceress"

Merlin turned to Hanthur unblinkingly with his lips slightly open in worry. Before he could say anything, Leon apologized, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked."

The boy shook his head. "No, it's fine."

The Knight smiled in embarrassment and then patted the boy's shoulder. "If one day you become a Knight, it will be a honor to fight by your side."

Hanthur smiled appreciatively. "And I the same."

Merlin smiled merrily and finished his food and put it down. "I'm going to go check on the royal prat," he said and walked away from them. As he entered Arthur's tent, he realized that the Prince was sitting on his chair in front of the table filled with food but he hadn't touch anything. Merlin frowned.

"Please, don't tell me you are going on a diet?"

Arthur glared at his manservant dismally. "I have been waiting for you."

"Waiting for me?" Merlin looked at him with one of his brows raised questioningly. "Do you need me to give you a bath? Or you need me to undress you?"

Arthur cocked a brow at his manservant and it took the warlock only a few seconds to catch on to what he had asked. He blushed. "Never mind."

As Merlin started to clear the table, he asked, "So what do you think of Hanthur?"

The Prince shrugged. "I think he is fine."

"And smart."

"Well, you're only saying that because you are an idiot."

"That's not true," the manservant said, offended by it.

Arthur stood up from his chair. "Okay, then name one person that is more stupid than you."

"Well," Merlin started and paused as the Prince started to undress himself. "Prince Arthur."

"What?"

"I'm not calling you, I'm answering your question," Merlin said with an entertaining smirk and Arthur only frowned.

"I am not as stupid as you, Merlin," he protested and threw his tunic at the manservant.

Still smiling, Merlin commented, "No, you're not as stupid as me. You're _more_ stupid than me."

"What?"

"You asked who is more stupid-"

"Shut up, Merlin," he ordered and Merlin obeyed. "Anyway, why do you ask about Hanthur?"

He shrugged. "Just wondering."

"And nothing more?" Merlin didn't answer but smiled. There were a hundred questions behind that one smile. The blond Prince swept his hair with his long fingers stressfully. "What does Hanthur mean to you?"

The question was so sudden that Merlin stumbled on his words. "W-what? Hanthur? What do you mean? He is Gaius's grandson and my friend."

Arthur stood up and walked round the table towards his manservant. "And nothing more?"

Merlin nodded his head. "If this is about that morning the other day, you've misunderstood. He was feeling down and I'm just cheering him up."

"By holding him."

"Well, that is what friends do."

The situation suddenly became awkward for the both of them with the realization of the fact that they didn't know what they were to each other. They were master and servant but they risked their lives for each other on numerous occasions; something that master and servant wouldn't normally do. The category 'friend' still seemed alien to them since they never showed any affection of friendship beside loyalty of duty.

"What am I to you?" Merlin asked inquisitively.

Arthur looked away, crossing his arms. He seemed to be as confused as his manservant. He always wanted Merlin near him at all times. He knew the reason why he kept giving the warlock chore after chore; just so he wouldn't leave the Prince's side. He didn't understand but when Merlin was not with him, he always looked for him, no matter what. Now that it seemed like Merlin was taking an interest in the new boy, it frustrated him to no end.

When Arthur failed to answer Merlin, the manservant shook his head, disappointed, and was about to walk out from the tent but the Prince grasped his wrist. As he turned his attention back to his master, both of their eyes locked and at this non-spoken moment they knew what they meant to each other. Looking from Merlin's eyes to his parted moist lips, Arthur couldn't help but slowly move closer to his manservant, moisten his own lips, and close his eyes as he brought his lips to Merlin's. The warlock's eyes widen and his body tensed from his Prince's action but only for a second. Then slowly he closed his eyes and pressed his lips back.

Arthur's lips felt warm against Merlin's. He caressed his tongue over the Prince's lips, seeking entrance, but Arthur pulled back. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "I shouldn't have done that."

Merlin looked confused and hurt. He blinked several times and turned to walk out and back to the campfire with Hanthur and Leon. The Prince wanted to follow his manservant, but somehow his feet were stuck to the ground and he couldn't seem to go after him.

"Are you okay?" Leon asked Merlin as they saw him leave the Prince's tent rather angrily. The warlock didn't answer but just took Hanthur's cup and drank whatever was in it. His face twisted in disgust as he tasted what he had drunk.

Hanthur smiled innocently as Merlin give him the odd look. "It's wine," he answered before the warlock asked.

"Here," the Knight refilled his cup and gave it to Merlin. Then emptied the wine bottle into Hanthur's cup and set it to the side. "I'm going to bed. You both should too. It's going to be another long day tomorrow," said Leon and walked into his tent, leaving the mother and son together.

Hanthur seemed to notice that something was troubling the warlock after he gulped the wine that Leon had given him. "Are you okay?" Before Merlin answered, he took the boy's cup and finished it with another single gulp. The boy just watched him curiously. "Are you sure you are okay?"

"Yes," snapped the warlock but regretted it when he saw Hanthur's smiling face falter. "I...I'm sorry. I'm just little stressed out and confused, that's all."

The time travel Prince nodded in understanding. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"I think you're the last person I want to talk about this to."

Hanthur frowned. "I'm your friend," he said. "Aren't I?"

Merlin finally looked up to the younger man and nodded. Suddenly the warlock's shoulder slumped down and his face frowned. "I think I am in love with someone but I can't tell that someone."

Hanthur's eyes narrowed in confusion at the warlock's behavior. He was fine just a second ago but now he looked like he was drunk. It was just three cups of wine but the warlock looked as though he had been drinking a barrel. The boy never saw the future Merlin drunk before. He was curious to know if his mother was a confession drunk. To test his theory, he asked, "You're in love? With whom?"

"Him," Merlin pointed to the Prince's tent and the boy's jaw dropped.

"You're in love with my father? Already? For how long now?"

The warlock's lips thinned and narrowed his eyes as he tried to think but ended up with a shrug. "I don't know. Years now," he answered and kept flopping his head side to side. The surprised expression was still plastered to Hanthur's face as he just realized that his mother had been in love with his father but his father probably never noticed. Merlin huffed out hopelessly. "But nothing can ever happen."

"Why not?"

"Well, he is in love with Gwen now and eventually, he will meet your mother and marry her. I have no chance," Merlin said, smiling goofily even though his eyes were very sad.

Hanthur still couldn't shake the surprising information that Merlin shared with him. He knew his mother would love his father eventually but he never thought that he had already loved him. He didn't see the warlock showing any kind of affection toward Arthur other than loyalty but then again, he had known his parents for only a few days. "Why?"

Merlin shrugged sloppily. "I mean I really _really_ hated him when I first met him. I thought he was just an obnoxious, pompous, arrogant, son of a-"

"Okay, I get it, Merlin," said the future Prince and his mother's head slumped to his shoulder.

"Why can't he see me as more than just an idiot? I mean he doesn't have to love me back. I can settle with just being friends," he said and looked so sad that Hanthur pitied him. He gently smoothed down the messy dark hair.

"He will love you...mother. He is just a blind man now but when he sees you for who you really are, he will love you more than anything in this world," he said and hoped to hear an answer from the warlock but all he received was just a loud snore. He couldn't help but laugh. Just as he looked up to his father's tent, he spotted the Prince was glaring at them before moving away. Hanthur swore he saw envy in the Prince's eyes and he became curious. Had his father already developed feelings for Merlin?

* * *

**A/N:** Yeah...I know...it's just a kiss! :D anyways I think I will have to take some times with chapter 5 too...because it is going to go on into a father/son relationship along with a mother/son...jealousy...misunderstand...and there is going to be one more OC...and she was introduce in this chapter: Evelyn...don't worry, you will enjoy her character hopefully...and she is not a bitch...or evil :D and she is the last OC...I don't want to add too much OC so just Hanthur and Evelyn...

**SNEAK PEEKS O.O :**

Arthur pat Hanthur's shoulder proudly. "You have proved to me that you are worthy to be a knight," he said. "Tomorrow there will be coronation to three other young men that will become one. Don't disappoint me."

The boy smile broadly at his father. "I promise you, you won't be disappointed." Arthur turn to leave when Merlin run past him and hug Hanthur. "Congratulation!" He cheered and pull back.

Hanthur give him a questioning look. "I just got the news right now. How did you know before I did?"

"Gwen told me," he said, avoiding making eyes contact with the prince who is still standing there. "Lets go to the Yellow Sun Tavern tonight to celebrate this special occasion!"

Arthur clear his throat. "Merlin, did you forget something?"

Merlin didn't want to see the prince but he force himself to with a fake smile. He replied, "No, I didn't forget about you, for course. That is why I ask Gwen to take my place tonight." He wink at the shocked prince. "I'm pretty sure you two have a lot to catch up." He intertwine his arms with Hanthur's and smile mischievously.

* * *

"Anyways, I think we don't need to worry about Sir Leon at the moment," Evelyn said, straighten herself.

"Why is that?" asked Hanthur.

She roll her eyes. "Hanthur, Merlin took the water pouch that is spike with aphrodisiac and guess who is going to drink it?" The future prince's face falter and whisper his father's name. "But that is not the worst part."

Hanthur look at her bewildered. "What is the worst part!"

* * *

As soon as Merlin touches Arthur's forehead to check his heated skin to see if he have a fever, the prince could no longer control his urges. Without warning, Arthur grab the younger man's hand and pull him into a kiss. Merlin's eyes widen in surprised and wanted to pull away but his body betrayed him and lean into his touch.

* * *

"Why can't you just admit to him that you love him?" Hanthur demanded as he is chasing after the wizard.

"Because I know that nothing is ever going to happen between us! You should know, he will be marrying your mother!" Merlin shouted back the answered.

Hanthur wanted to blurt out that Merlin is his mother but for some reason he hold back on it. "That does not mean my father love my mother..." he trailed off as Merlin stop walking and turn to him. He become frustrated with the situation as he just got what he just say out loud.

"Arthur didn't marry for love? Is that why...you throw a tantrum when you saw Arthur kiss Gwen? Because he show his affection for someone else?"

"No...no, that is not what I mean..." Hanthur stammered.

"Then you should hate me too...for loving your father," Merlin said and took off in his speed walking again. He sigh irritatedly at himself.

* * *

Arthur lean down and give Gwen a passionate kiss just as Merlin walked in. Both of them jump away as if they were being burn. For two seconds, Merlin give out rejected expression look that make Arthur felt rather guilty. "Sorry," Merlin said and walk back out.

* * *

"We can close out eyes to the things we want to see but we can't close our heart to things that we don't want to feel," Hanthur said.

Merlin's lips thinning and close his eyes as he let the tears fall freely down his face. Hanthur's heart break to see Merlin so heart-broken. He came and sit next to his mother and put his arms around his shoulders.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Merlin (sadly).

**Rated:** M, for good reason...Mpreg :D

******Special Thanks to: **Loopstagirl and Speedy Speck for helping me with the editing :D

**A/N:** Okay, I'm apologize for taking so long to update this chapter.

* * *

Chapter 5

As soon as Gwen left the room, Morgana dressed quickly, putting on her purple hooded cape. She made her way through the empty streets and out of Camelot into the forest. She rode for a good distance before she reached her destination; an open-mouth cave with a few of Cenred's soldiers guarding it.

When she appeared before them, they simply bowed and let her pass. Inside the cave, there was a fire burning with a giant black pot over it. Standing before it was no one else other than her half-sister, Morgause. "My sister," the blond witch greeted happily and the sisters both had the same merry expression as they grabbed each other hands. "How have you fared?"

"Camelot has welcomed back its daughter with open arms," answered Morgana.

"Uther does not suspect?"

"He laps up my lies like the sniveling dog that he is."

"And the boy?"

The beautiful ward's face faltered at the mention of Arthur's servant. "Merlin," she felt disgusted just saying his name. "He believes that I've change. And he is right. Soon he will see exactly how much."

Morgana took out a handkerchief from her pocket and the witch took it as if it was gold. "Ah, good job, you've done well," she said, smiling wickedly. The ward looked at the witch curiously.

"The tears of Uther Pendragon have only begun to fall."

Then she dropped the handkerchief into the pot; a thick black potion bubbling within. She turned to pick a skeletal-looking root and put it in. As it sunk into the potion, Morgana's ear drums almost popped from the scream that came from the pot. Morgause smiled at her sister's reaction.

"The mandrake root is very special. Only those with magic can hear its cries. But for those who are without magic, the mandrake pierces the very recesses of the soul, twisting the unconscious into the very image of fear and dread." She swirled the potion and Morgana just watched, enjoying it. "Uther Pendragon will find that his great kingdom counts for nothing when he has lost his mind." Morgana smiled at the idea of what her sister's plan would achieve, watching as Morgause began to chant.

The witch pulled out the mandrake root, dripping with the thick potion, and handed it to Morgana. "Put it under his bed," she instructed and the ward nodded. "Now you must go before anyone notices that you're missing."

Morgana give her sister another hug before she left. When she was gone, a figure in a large green cape, with the hood covering his face, came out from a dark shadow. Morgause turned as she noticed his presence and smiled pleasantly. "She was impermanent as we expected."

The figure removed his cape and revealed himself as nobody else but Mordred. "You did well with her taming, my little priestess," he said and she bowed gracefully as he came to her. He was no older than fifteen years old and much younger than her, but his power was much greater than the witch. Even she – the one working the magic to bring down Camelot - was afraid of the young druid's power. "Make sure she makes no mistakes."

"She won't," Morgause assured him, still coming to her sister's defense in front of him.

He lowered his head and brought forth a white staff and she looked at it in disbelief. The staff belonged to the High Priestess of the Isle of the Blessed, made from the holy Rowen tree in the heart of the castle. How on earth did the druid boy get a hold it?

"Give it to her. You will know what to do." Stretching out her hand, Morgause took it from him, nodding as she did so.

Then he turned and disappeared back into the darkness without another word.

* * *

Hanthur awoke to find himself asleep outside, holding onto the bottle of empty wine that Leon had left the night before. The sun was still hiding behind the horizon but the servants were already up and getting their master's breakfast ready. He stumbled over to the man who would eventually become his mother.

Merlin was stirring the thick stew of rabbits and vegetables bubbling happily over the small fire that was burning brightly.

"Do you need any help?" The time-travel boy asked as he washed his hands and wiped his face.

The manservant shook his head. "No, Arthur likes his stew a certain way. If I mess this up, he will never let me live to see the light."

Hanthur frowned. "Funny, the way you talk about my father is so different from how the future Merlin talks about him."

The warlock's lips thinned as he smiled. "How?"

The boy waved his hand airily. "Well, the Merlin from my time always told me how great of a King he was," he said and the warlock laughed; even though he knew it would be true when Arthur's time came. "And how much his King loves him," he added quietly, watching Merlin's reaction as the warlock locked eyes with the younger man.

"Me? I said all of that?" Merlin asked, glancing away again at Hanthur's words. Hanthur nodded. "Are you sure the Merlin you know and I are the same person?" He muttered, clearly not knowing how to react.

Hanthur just smiled as he watched his mother move the pot and start dishing out some of the stew into a smaller bowl. "I wouldn't mistake you for anyone in the world," he said simply, spotting a sleepy Leon making his way over to his manservant to get water to wash up. He grinned and decided to greet the blond knight, leaving Merlin to it.

* * *

Arthur was still asleep when Merlin walked into the tent. He couldn't help but take a moment to study Arthur's sleeping face. He admired it enough when the Prince was awake, but asleep, there was no abuse being thrown his way, no scathing comments being made. Instead, Arthur was peaceful. He frowned as the thought and just wished that Arthur would look at him the way he looked at Gwen; in love.

But the manservant knew it was impossible. Arthur was the heir to the throne; he would need to marry a woman to bare him an heir of his own; something that Merlin could not do. The kiss from the night before could only be a dream; it's not like anything more would ever happen. He needed to focus on his role; helping the future king builds a great Albion. He just hoped one day he would mean more to Arthur than a useless human being.

His mind was now satisfied that he could function past last night's kiss, he looked away from the handsome prince and placed the tray of food on the table. He started picking up Arthur's clothes from the floor as something to do whilst he waited for Arthur to stir. Merlin honestly didn't understand why the stupid prince kept leaving his clothes on the floor in the first place. There was a basket that was meant for dirty clothes in the corner but no, the prince decided to make more work for his servant by simply throwing them on the floor.

After he picked up the dirty clothes and put them in their rightful place, the basket, and was about to leave, Arthur called out his name. He turned to face his prince, who was staring at him sleepily. "Yes, my lord?"

"Tell Hanthur that he will be joining me for breakfast," Arthur ordered, sitting up as he did so.

"Yes, my lord." He turned to leave again, but the same thing happened with Arthur calling his name. He turned back to his prince, giving a curious look when he saw the royal was avoiding making eye contact with him and blushing.

"About yesterday night, I'm sorry," Arthur apologized earnestly.

Merlin took the apology to mean that the kiss had been a mistake. Even though he didn't want to admit it, his heart did clench with the pain from it. He forced a smile and replied, "It's forgotten and forgiven, sire. Is there anything else?" When Arthur shook his head, Merlin bowed and left the room.

Arthur lay back down on the bed and sighed. He hated the awkward silence between him and his servant. He shouldn't have kissed him last night but he couldn't help himself. Whenever Merlin look like that; confused, questioning, or hurt, he just wanted to be able to soothe it away, to protect the man from the world. He gave out another sigh and got up to get dressed. It was their last day on the hunt and he needed to get ready.

Merlin came back in with a bucket of water and set it down on the end of the table, the opposite side from the Prince's breakfast. Another servant came after Arthur had washed with an extra tray of food for Hanthur, only staying long enough to put it down and go again. As Merlin helped him dressed, Arthur couldn't keep his eyes away from his manservant. He could see that Merlin noticed his glaring because he kept biting his bottom lip nervously. He looked so cute that Arthur was hard pushed not to simply grab hold and kiss him again.

"So you had a drink with Hanthur last night?" Arthur said, wanting to break the silence.

The manservant studied him carefully before answering, "Yes. Sir Leon brought some wine and we had a little drink."

The Prince nodded in acknowledgment and Merlin finished helping him dress. The servant turned to get the bucket of used water and was about to leave when Arthur realized he didn't want him to go. The prince did the unthinkable thing and grabbed his manservant's wrist.

"Merlin," he started but paused when Hanthur walked in.

Hanthur looked from the prince to the manservant curiously when he realized that they were holding hands. "Did I interrupt something?"

Arthur let go of his Merlin's hand. "No," he said and tried not to look so disappointed when Merlin left the tent. He then turned to Hanthur.

"Sit," he gestured the boy to take the seat opposite from his usual one.

Hanthur obeyed, but didn't have long to wait until the prince joined him.

"Eat," Arthur practically ordered as he noticed the boy was not touching anything.

Hanthur frowned, feeling like an idiot for waiting for Arthur to tell him what to do. He knew he needed to be more relaxed around the man. But Arthur was not like Merlin; he was more intimidating than the warlock.

For the first five minutes, they ate in silence and Hanthur was getting more and more nervous.

"So," his father said and he almost jumped, not expecting Arthur to actually say anything. He bit his bottom lip nervously and mentally reminding himself to be calm. Arthur noticed that the boy acted a little bit like Merlin, but shook the thought from his head. "Where are you from?"

"Oh...Argion, a small village in Caerleon," Hanthur answered quickly but not _too_ quickly. He didn't want to arouse Arthur's suspicion. He wasn't sure if the village existed yet but he hoped so. He let out a breath in relief as he saw his father nod acceptingly.

"So why are you here in Camelot?"

"I came to find Gaius. I didn't know he was my grandfather before I started looking. My uncles never really spoke of him." He drank his cup of water uncomfortably, feeling guilty for lying.

Arthur understood the expression to mean that the boy was still very nervous in his presence. "What happened to your uncles that you had to come here to look for Gaius?"

Hanthur lowered down his spoon from eating the delicious rabbit stew and glanced over to the future king, disheartened.

"They were killed," he said, blinking back the tears as he remembered each and every one of their honorable deaths. "Killed by a powerful sorceress."

The Prince also stopped eating his meal, his appetite vanishing. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked."

Hanthur shook his head. "No, I think it is best to let it out. Keeping it in will only destroy me."

"So you have a hatred for magic then?" Arthur asked, curiously.

"No," the boy answered daringly and the Prince glared at him, clearly not understanding. Hanthur knew Arthur's current attitude towards magic, but he was not going to lie about that as well, not to his father.

"And why is that? Didn't you say it was magic that took your uncles from you?"

"Because I don't believe magic is evil," he answered simply.

* * *

Merlin finished his morning chores; feeding the horses, washing the cooking utensils, and polishing the weapons. He was making his way to check on the Prince and Hanthur. He hoped Arthur didn't invite the poor boy in just to make a fool out of him. He shook his head, knowing that Arthur was not that type of a person. As he came closer to the tent, he overheard Arthur asked, "So you have a hatred for magic then?" Even though this question sounded more like a test to show Hanthur's loyalty for Camelot, Merlin felt a hand clench around his heart.

"No," said the boy and the warlock became curious of Arthur's future son's opinion about magic. Merlin moved closer, able to see through one of the flaps and therefore see what was going on beyond.

"And why is that? Didn't you say it was magic that took your uncles from you?"

"Because I don't believe magic is evil," Hanthur answered simply, leaning forward on the table. "Magic is like a weapon. It can be bad or good; depending on the person who wields it. If my uncles were killed by a sword instead of magic, am I supposed to hate anyone that wields a sword?"

Arthur grinned proudly at the boy's comeback. "But Camelot is a kingdom which goes against magic. Can you protect this kingdom without being swayed by it?"

Hanthur smiled and shook his head. "My mother, she told me to always follow my heart and never sway from that," he said and slowly stood up. "Sire, it was an honor to come on this hunt with you as a test to become one of your noble knights but I can never turn blind eyes if an innocent is convicted of a crime that he hasn't committed; with or without magic." He bowed with respect and turned to leave.

"Who is your father?" asked the Prince, halting the boy.

The boy smiled genuinely and turned to face the future king again. "He was a great man of honor." Then he left the tent without a backwards glance. Merlin only just had time to move away from the flap before he exited.

Hanthur almost ran into Merlin when he came out from the tent. "Merlin," he exclaimed in surprise and the warlock smiled guiltily at him. "Don't tell me you're eavesdropping on us?"

"Ah, depends how you define eavesdropping," Merlin responded jittery.

The boy scowled. "I define it as listening to other people's conversation when you are not supposed to. How do you define it, Merlin?"

Merlin grimaced. "Don't talk to me like Arthur, Hanthur. I won't have it."

"Well, I am his..." he pursed his lips when he almost blurted out he was Arthur's son out loud. "His son," he hissed.

"What? What was that? I can't hear you," Merlin jested merrily as he ran off with the younger boy chasing after him.

Arthur came out to see what the commotion was. His eyes widened in shock to see Hanthur chasing after Merlin around the camp like a pair of lovers. His lips thinning and his fists clenching on each side, he felt it again, that feeling of jealousy.

Little did the three of them know, Evan has also been eavesdropping on the conversation. "So Hanthur doesn't hate magic, huh?" he said and smiled warmly to himself.

* * *

The servants had already packed everything up and were ready to leave the forest when Arthur decided to have one more hour of hunting. Hanthur agreed, thinking that he probably wouldn't be able to talk to his father casually as he did in the tent, so one more hour hunting with the future king was something he wanted to do. But Arthur's plan was only to make a fool out of the boy.

"I don't know why you wanted to drag this hunt longer than it should be," Merlin complained as they were sneaking behind a boar. "We could have been home now, in our comfortable bed, and have much better food to eat. But no—o..." he dragged out the last word as much as he could. "We get to be stuck here on this muddy and rainy day."

Arthur grimaced at his manservant's complaint. "For your information, it's cloudy, not rainy, and we haven't got a boar yet, Merlin."

"Oh, and I suppose the boar is the most important course for the festival. We killed over thirty deer, a lot of rabbits, and a bear! How does a boar compare to a freaking bear?"

The Prince sighed, annoyed by Merlin. "Merlin, shut up."

The warlock just threw up his arms, infuriated and turned to Hanthur, who was laughing at their antics by this point.

"What is so funny?" Merlin demanded, crossing his arms as they followed the Prince and knights closely.

The boy just shrugged. "I think he extend our stay because he wants to make a fool of me."

Merlin looked at Hanthur, puzzled. "What? Why?"

Hanthur smile slyly. "You will see."

With that, he leant up and kissed the warlock on the cheek just as the Prince turned his head towards them. "Thank you for wishing me good luck, Merlin."

The warlock looked at the boy, stunned and confused.

"Merlin," Arthur tried his best not to yell and clench his teeth as his dazed manservant came to him. "You better not stray from my sight again!" He glared from his still stupefied servant to the boy, who only returned a cocky smirk back to the Prince. Arthur mentally noted to himself that he would definitely punch the boy later, despite their age difference. No one touched Merlin apart from him.

For the rest of the hour, Arthur made sure Merlin stayed close between him and Leon whilst Hanthur was on the other side of the Prince. Another servant named Evan was the other side of Leon, looking at Merlin suspiciously, like he knew something but whenever the warlock looked at the servant, Evan just looked away.

It was then they heard a low snort near them, probably a few yards away.

"Merlin, my spear," whispered the young prince and the manservant gave it to him. Another servant gave Hanthur a sword while Evan gave Leon a bow and arrow. As they came nearer to the animal, they all suddenly felt the ground trembling. Something shifted, and there wasn't only one small boar but a giant herd of them. The sight of the humans in their territory sparked off their fury.

"Run!" Leon cried and everyone ran in different directions as they fled for their lives. The boars all seemed to be heading in their direction.

Arthur ran but he looked back to see if his manservant was behind him. The skinny warlock was on his heels, as was Leon, Hanthur, and Evan. The others ran towards another safe location, he hoped. They stopped to catch their breath when they thought they are safe.

"Merlin, water," the Prince huffed tiredly.

Merlin reached for it but couldn't find it. The others had already taken their water pouches out and started drinking it. "I...I think I dropped it," he replied.

His master looked at his manservant in an angry disbelief. "You what?!"

Knowing the prince was angry; Hanthur pulled Merlin behind him protectively and slammed his water pouch to the older man's chest. "We were chased. It is not his fault," he protested.

Arthur glared at the boy for speaking out of turn, drew back his arm and punched him across the face. "How dare you dare to speak to me in that manner," he said furiously and grabbed the collar of his shirt to punch him again. Leon grabbed his prince's wrist firmly as his arm drew back. Even without any words exchanged, both the knight and the prince understand each other thoughts; Arthur was not acting like a prince should act. As the knight let go, Arthur turned back to the boy. "If you speak to me like that again, I will lock you up in the dungeon for the rest of your days, even if you are the grandson of the court physician!" He threatened and let the boy go with a shove back to the ground. Merlin gave his master a bewildered look but couldn't find any words to say to him as he walked away.

"Are you okay?" Merlin asked in concern, helping the younger man up.

Leon patted the boy's shoulder. "You shouldn't have done that. Arthur can threaten and yell at Merlin all he likes but he wouldn't touch a single hair on him."

The boy just gave a little chuckle through his new bleeding, bruised lip. "I didn't know he could be so jealous."

Merlin gave them a puzzled look as they shared an understanding laugh at the comment.

Then the blond knight turned to Merlin and handed him his water pouch. "I haven't drunk from it. Take it to him. I will share with my manservant," he said generously.

The warlock shook his head. "No, let him be thirsty since he-"

"No, no," Hanthur protested and grabbed the water pouch from the knight and gave it to Merlin. "It's not his fault. I disrespected him. He is a prince while...I'm still a nobody."

Merlin frowned and put his hand on the boy's shoulder with firm squeeze, knowing full well that the future prince was hurt from getting punched by his father. Not just physically either. "You are not a nobody. He is just a prat."

The boy smiled. "Then it is your job to change that."

With another frown, Merlin nodded and left with the water pouch. Evan's eyes widened in fear as he watched what was happening as Merlin left.

"Are you okay?" Leon asked as he saw Evan's troubled face. The temporary servant swallowed and nodded his head. Hanthur looked at the servant suspiciously.

Arthur was only walking but Merlin had to run in order to catch up with him. The Prince didn't stop for his sake until he tripped over something and landed flat on his face. Arthur heard him and finally stopped with a sigh, turning back to his manservant.

"You really are a klutz, Merlin," he said and helped the warlock sit up.

Merlin gave the prince his usual lopsided smile. "Well, it is one of my many gifts," he said and handed his master the water pouch. Arthur still looked displeased but accepted it. He took a sip and sealed it again. He gave it back to Merlin and then they suddenly felt the ground tremble again and saw the boars were coming their way.

Arthur quickly grabbed his manservant, helping him to his feet and both of them started running once again. They ran at full speed but again, Arthur always checked behind to make sure Merlin wasn't being left behind. They ran across a river, but swiftly changed direction. The boars behind them were only half the group, the other half had doubled around and now seemed to be coming at them from the opposite direction. The river wasn't deep, so both of them splashed their way through the surf, wet but able to keep moving. Arthur quickly stopped as he realized that he had almost gone over the edge of a high waterfall. He grabbed Merlin when the idiot didn't stop and pulled him back sharply. The warlock's blue eyes widened at the height of the waterfall and turned back to the herd. Caught in frenzy, the water hadn't stopped the boars either.

"Can you swim?" Arthur asked.

Merlin looked horrified, knowing what the prince was planning but nodded. As expected, Arthur grabbed his manservant's hand and both of them jumped from the top. The wind stole the air from their lungs until they crashed hard into the water below, the force being more than Arthur had been expecting. Arthur tried his best to hold onto Merlin's hand but the power of the strong current under the water made it impossible; Merlin's hand slipped away from his and disappeared along with the water. Some boars crashed after them – clearly unable to stop in time - but he was able to dodge them and swim up, gasping for air. The current above was as strong as below and he couldn't grab onto anything. His eyes keep searching for the warlock as he was forced to float away.

"Merlin!" He called and gurgled as he went underwater again but he pulled himself up. "Merlin!" Fear suddenly overtook his whole body and his heart hardened with each passing second when he couldn't see his manservant anywhere.

"Merlin!" He finally got a hold of a giant boulder and managed to pull himself up. That didn't mean that he had given up looking for Merlin, the servant just had to be around here somewhere!

"Merlin!" His eyes wouldn't stop searching and when he saw the scrawny man floating towards him, he almost lost his balance and only just stopped himself from falling back in. His heart dropped as he saw blood. This time, he didn't hesitate, but he jumped back into the water and he didn't stop swimming until he reached Merlin. The next five minutes of fighting the powerful current seemed like hours when he finally reach Merlin and grabbed his red neckerchief to pull his body near his own. Then, with all his strengths, he pulled his servant onto the shore.

Still gasping for air, he crawled over and checked on Merlin, hoping he was breathing. He was relieved to find that he was indeed, but he still checked his body, looking for the source of the blood. The bleeding came from the warlock's left thigh. Arthur tore the trouser open and covered his mouth with the back of his hand as he witnessed the large gash on his manservant's leg. He knew he had to stop the bleeding and took off his tunic, putting pressure onto the gash. He had never really prayed before, but at that moment, he was whispering prayers to any of the gods to help Merlin.

"Are you okay?"

Arthur looked up to see an old couple and a child, no older than five, standing a few feet away from them. They looked harmless and Arthur had never been so relieved before.

"Help! He is hurt!" He shouted, pleadingly. The old man rushed over while the old woman stayed behind with the child. He knelt down on the opposite side of the Prince and took a look at the wound.

"Is he going to be okay?"

"The injury is not deep but it can get infected if we don't get it treated," said the old man. "My farming hut is near here, we can go there."

Arthur nodded and turned to pick up the manservant when he felt something smash over his head and he lost consciousness almost immediately. The old woman came running to her husband's side. "Is he the one?" She asked.

The old man nodded. "He is Emrys," he replied and then closed his eyes as he incanted a healing spell on Merlin's injury. In less than a minute, the injury disappeared as if it had never happen.

The warlock's body stirred and he fluttered his eyes open. He shakily sat up, startled as he laid eyes upon the old man. "Who are you?" He demanded, but then he spotted Arthur sprawled on the ground next to him. "What did you do to him?"

The old woman smiled. "Nothing, dear. Just knocked him out so we could properly heal you," she answered.

Merlin looked at them in confusion but then noticed that they were druids. "Why?"

Both of the couple smiled. "Because we know about you, Emrys," she said. "We can't let someone as important as you die, not yet."

"So you're helping me?"

They nodded. "There is a hut a mile away from here. It's best to get there before night fall," said the old man and both of the couple got up and left with the child.

**TBC**

* * *

**A/N:** I decided that since I'm finally settle with my school works and I would like to start another Merthur Story. So look out for it. It might be out by next week depending on my beta. Oh and don't worry about this story. I already finish plotting it, I just need to write it. I will assure you all I will finish this story :D


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Merlin (sadly)

**Rated: **M, for good reason...

**A/N: **Okay, chapter 5 is separate into chapter 6 & 7 because it is too long...so this story is taking its' course to be longer than expected. But please continued reading it :D

* * *

Chapter 6

Hanthur and the knights had been searching through the forest thoroughly three times, but they couldn't find the prince or the warlock anywhere. By nightfall, Leon had to send word to the king. Uther wasn't pleased to say the least and sent an army to scan through the forest. He wouldn't allow anyone to sleep until the prince was found.

Hanthur was changing his muddy clothes into new ones in his tent when Evan walked in. "I need to speak to you," said the servant.

Hanthur glanced up at the cat-eyed boy curiously and continuing changing. "Yes?"

"Sir Leon's water pouch is spiked with aphrodisiac."

Hanthur stopped dressing and turn to the servant with stern eyes. "What do you mean?"

Evan whispered a spell and then suddenly, everything and everyone's motion became slow. Hanthur reach for his sword instantly, knowing that this was magic.

"Who are you?" he pointed his sword at the servant.

The boy rolled his green eyes and started to strip. As soon as he was naked, he turned into a beautiful girl with platinum blond hair. The future prince looked away, blushing, as the woman grabbed a robe nearby and put it on.

"My name is Evelyn and I'm a witch," she replied. "I am in love with Sir Leon so I spiked his drink in order to be allowed in his bed. But little did I know that he was going to give it to Merlin." She waved her arms around as she try to make her point which only made the poor boy a little confused.

"Wait, why would you want to do that?"

She gave him a look that seemed to be sending the message _'are you stupid or something?'_

"Didn't you hear me? I said I'm a witch and as you already know, Leon is a knight. We can't be together."

"So you're just going to spike his drink?"

"Yes. I want to be the mother of his children."

He gaped in surprise at how shameless this beautiful girl was. "How old are you? You can't be more than fifteen years old."

"Eighteen, actually," she answered in a matter-in-fact tone, as if it was no big deal. Hanthur felt his eyes widen in astonishment.

"And you want to have his baby?"

She shrugged as if it was nothing. "I'm in love," she said in exasperation, a soft sigh escaping her. "But I swear I wasn't seeking revenge on the prince or his servant. I just want to lose my virginity to Sir Leon."

Again, he gaped at the girl's straight-forward and shameless attitude. "That is wrong."

"No, it's not," she protested, crossing her arms. "I'm not forcing him to love me or try to kill him."

"But what you're doing is basically rape."

"He is a man! There is nothing for him to lose."

"What if he is a virgin himself?"

"Hanthur, he is a man!"

"That doesn't give you the right to do such a disgraceful thing! To him or to yourself!"

"It's my decision!"

Both of them stopped and just glared at each other in disbelief.

"Anyway, I think we don't need to worry about Sir Leon at the moment," she said, straightening herself up and giving Hanthur a meaningful look.

"Why is that?"

She rolled her eyes. "Hanthur, Merlin took the water pouch and guess who is going to drink it?" The future prince's face faltered as he finally caught on. "But that is not the worst part."

Hanthur look at her, bewildered. "What is the worst part?!"

She sighed guiltily. "I put an enchantment in with it too. Two hours after the sex, the victim would not remember anything."

For a minute, Hanthur felt like he couldn't breathe. All these time, he'd been worried about Morgana taking over Camelot, he didn't even notice the enemy that was right amongst them.

"And why didn't you come to me earlier?"

"Because I didn't want to reveal myself," she snapped, sounding defensive.

"And what change your mind?"

"Well, I know Merlin has magic –don't ask me how - and he seemed pretty close to you. I already told you, I didn't want to hurt anyone."

Hanthur swept his long fingers through his black hair in frustration as another surprise hit him. "You know about..." he stopped as he looked around the people around them. They were still all moving in slow motion, it wasn't possible for anyone to be overhearing them. "Merlin's magic?" he whispered.

She pursed her lips but nodded. "I'm one-third eel mermaid and they're pretty sensitive when it comes to magic," she replied.

He blinked and shook his head at her in disbelief. "An eel mermaid?"

"Yes, instead of a fish tail, we have eel tails. Our skin is more sensitive to magic, so we sense it." she answered. "But this is not the time to be angry at me or even to try to get to know me. I mean I know I am gorgeous," she giggled in a flattering manner, but stopped as she sensed that the boy was not amused. "We have to stop them before they drink the water."

* * *

Arthur woke up abruptly and he must have sat up too fast because he suddenly felt nauseous. He rubbed his aching forehead and looked around his surroundings. It was almost dark but he knew he was lying on a very uncomfortable bed. It seemed to be made of wood with only a thin mattress on it and a red blanket over him. Looking around, he could see that he was in a straw hut with a dirty floor and a fire built in the middle.

"Ah, you're awake." He looked toward the voice and his eyes widened to see his servant coming in with new piece of wood.

"Merlin, you're alive!" Arthur said, trying not to sound too surprised and happy but failed. His voice gave away how pleased he was to see his servant awake again.

Merlin smiled like he always did and feed more wood to the fire. "Of course I'm alive, you idiot."

"That's my insult! Only I can call you that!" Arthur complained and removed the itchy blanket from his body, but quickly replaced it when he realized he wasn't wearing anything. "Why am I naked?"

"Oh don't be shy, my lord. It is not the first time I've seen you naked." The warlock laughed but Arthur only frowned. "I didn't want you to catch a cold so I took off your wet clothes and hung them outside to dry." Then he pulled out Leon's water pouch and handed to the prince. "I didn't lose it this time."

Arthur rolled his eyes, knowing that Merlin just want him to feel guilty for overreacting on punching Hanthur earlier and he snatched it from his hand. "I thought you were injured," he said before he took a large gulp of the water.

The warlock smiled and shook his head. "You must have dreamt it because after you pull me out from the water, you fainted."

"I did?"

He nodded.

"The old couple..."

"What old couple?"

The prince studied Merlin's carefully. He knew he didn't imagine the two adults and the child who had found them but the servant's facial expression didn't falter so he dropped the subject. He took another large gulp of water and handed it back to the warlock. "Have some."

"No, I couldn't since it has your royal germs in it."

"Merlin," he said warningly and Merlin laughed as he took the pouch and finished it. The prince sighed as he lay back down on the uncomfortable bed.

"How come you're not naked?" The question triggered a very uncomfortable atmosphere for the both of them as they caught each other eyes.

In those few seconds, Merlin's body started to react oddly just as his eyes wondered over the upper-half of the naked prince. He had seen Arthur's muscled chest, arms, and broad shoulders for years but it had never really aroused him to this point before. His mind and body was telling him to do things that he had always been able to endure up until now. But for some reason,n right at this moment, he couldn't control that urge.

"I-I…" Merlin stopped, gulping as he realized his manhood was becoming hard just by looking at the prince's handsome face. "It just got...dry," he finished lamely and turned away before Arthur could notice his arousal.

Arthur didn't look away. He wanted to but he couldn't—he couldn't take off his eyes from Merlin's nape. He wanted to taste that slender and flawless skin. The thought of suckling Merlin's neck made his cock twitch. He quickly sat up, becoming hard. He shifted the blanket over his lower body as his manservant turned to look at him curiously. He felt his face flush and his body becoming abnormally hot.

"What's wrong?" Merlin said and took a step towards his prince. He was still bent over from where he had been feeding the fire, meaning that he was practically crawling towards Arthur.

"I...I.." the prince had never been so lost for words before but the way Merlin was approaching him made him speechless. He just wanted to push his manservant down, rip all his clothes off, and thrust his hard and leaking cock into him until the younger man cried out in pleasure. The feeling was almost overwhelming, yet Arthur used all the self-control he possessed to look away. He tried to think of anything else other than Merlin.

It didn't work as the naïve manservant asked, "Are you okay?" Then he reached out a hand to the prince's head. As soon as the servant touched him, Arthur could no longer control his urges.

Without warning, Arthur grabbed Merlin's hand and pulled him into a kiss. Merlin's eyes widened in surprise and he made to pull away but his body betrayed him and leant into the touch. He slanted his head and opened his mouth to let Arthur in, something he gladly did as he slid his tongue into Merlin's parted lips and swept it over every bit of his mouth. Merlin gently rested one hand on Arthur's cheek and the other on his neck as Arthur slid off the bed, kneeling with his servant, naked, as he wrapping his arms around his partner in an embrace.

Merlin managed to force himself to think straight from the sensual heat and pulled back from his prince by pushing the larger body away from his.

"We...can't...do this," he protested, knowing that if he didn't stop now, he will regret it later. Arthur had already made it clear that morning the kiss from last night was a mistake. So why did he want Merlin all of the sudden? He doesn't understand, and that scared him.

For a long moment, Arthur did consider stopping as he tried to gain his composure, rubbing his fingers together. Right from the beginning of their first meeting, he knew there was something about his manservant that he couldn't quite put his finger on. Now Arthur had come to understand his own feelings, and that frightened him. He knew he had always wanted Merlin...he just couldn't bring himself to admit to it. Until now…

Merlin thought that the moment of heat had finally begun to pass and he was going to be able to move away when Arthur captured Merlin's throbbing red lips again. One of Arthur's hand crept up the bottom of his red tunic and Merlin shivered, goosebumps breaking out over his skin at the feeling of his prince's hand on him. He really did want to push Arthur away again but it seemed his body didn't want to respond to the thought yet again, especially when Arthur's lips moved from his own onto the warlock's neck. Merlin gave a cry pain blossomed on the nape of his neck as Arthur's teeth sunk in, marking him, _claiming_ him.

"Arthur...please, stop..." Merlin murmured as his prince licked the blood of the bite away. He was glad that his lips didn't betray his mind like his body did but Arthur didn't answer or stop his actions. He did, however, pause, eyes flickering up to meet Merlin's.

"You really want me to stop?"

Merlin, however, could do nothing but shake his head, body shaking with need and desire.

He pulled off his servant's tunic, exposing the younger man's collarbone and chest before unbuckling his belt and pulled his trousers away, revealing the firm, sleek, slender body. Arthur stared, awestruck, at Merlin's beautiful body. He never thought his manservant would have such a lean body and his manhood was not small like he thought it would be; it's as big and thick as Arthur's. Merlin blushed furiously at being completely naked in front of his prince. He never recalled being nude in front of Arthur before, not even shirtless.

"You are gorgeous," Arthur commented breathlessly. Then his hand drifted lower and grabbed Merlin's half-harden member, earning a moan from the slighter man. The heat and radiation coming from Arthur actually made Merlin's toes curl and his manhood twitch in his hot hand. A second later, he was pushed to the ground and Arthur's hard body lay on top of him. One of his knees nudged the younger man's legs open and slicked his middle finger with his saliva.

"This might hurt but only for a minute," Arthur promised, before sliding the finger into Merlin's entrance and both of them groaned simultaneously.

Arthur could feel Merlin's body tense up around him.

"Arthur..." Merlin whispered, look a little baffled and shivering underneath his prince. Face contorted in discomfort, Merlin lifted his head and rested it on Arthur's shoulder. He could feel Arthur's finger twisting gently within him before another finger was added. Even though it was supposed to be uncomfortable, Arthur was pressing on a place that made Merlin's body squirm, and excited sigh escape from his lips. The sound caused heat to rush through his body. Hearing it, Arthur's hand didn't stop but tried to get more pleasure out of him by adding a third finger.

"Arthur...inside me..." Merlin pleaded. "I want you...in me...now..."

Seizing the opportunity, Arthur pulled his fingers out and lined the head of his full throbbing erection with his manservant's entrance. As he pushed in, Merlin winced and gave a cry as the painful burn took hold. Arthur held onto the bony man and claimed his mouth in a kiss.

"Relax," Arthur mumbled between the kisses. "It will soon pass. Relax."

Merlin listened to his prince's soothing voice and tried his best to relax his muscles and control his breathing. Arthur guiding himself slowly, inch by incredible inch, inside until Merlin swallowed him whole.

"Are you okay?" Arthur asked in concern as he saw tears trailing down from the warlock's eyes.

Merlin could barely answer because of the pain. As the prince could see that his manservant was in a lot of pain, he made to pull out but Merlin encircled his arms around the prince's shoulder and whimpered encouragingly, "I'm...fine...move...please move."

He smiled gleefully and thrust gently into the man at first, and then started picking the pace up. Merlin closed his eyes as his prince began to go deeper and deeper inside of him. His inner walls were stretched by the prince's shape. As the pain finally subsided, all that was left to bear was the pleasure of how large he was. Arthur grabbed Merlin's legs under the knees and pulled him up to meet his thrusts. Merlin gave a cry of sheer lust as Arthur found his sensitive spot. Arthur noticed, and immediately began altering his angle so that he hit the spot every time.

Merlin made such sweet sounds, gasps and sighs that went straight to Arthur's cock. Unable to stop himself, his pace became more frantic. Merlin had clung onto his prince's neck desperately; burying his face in firm muscular chest. Pre-come had gathered at the head of his cock as Arthur sent him to levels of pleasure beyond anything he had experienced before.

"Touch yourself, Merlin. Do it for me."

Timidly, Merlin opened his eyes and saw Arthur's gaze boring into him. He knew Arthur was enjoying watching the pleasure playing on his face and sped up the pace yet again. Merlin's cheeks flushed as he grabbed his own member, pulling in time to Arthur's thrusts. It was the most erotic thing Arthur had ever seen.

The warlock bit his bottom lip as he pumped his cock. Within seconds, he tightened around his prince, begging. Arthur didn't understand a word of what his manservant was trying to tell him but he knew what Merlin was asking for. He plunged into Merlin fast and hard, driving into him. Within seconds, his manservant's body shivered as his moans grew louder and louder. His muscles clenched around Arthur and he groaned as he came.

Merlin looked so absolutely gorgeous when he came that Arthur climaxed inside him at the same time. He collapsed over Merlin, breathing hard, riding out the aftershocks. Merlin's arms wrapped around him and nuzzled his face against Arthur's. He found Arthur's lips with his own and brought them together. His prince moaned into his lips and kissed him back.

"I love you," Arthur murmured between the kisses, making Merlin's eyes widen in surprise. The prince chuckled at his manservant's expression.

Merlin pulled back from the kiss but still clung to the prince's shoulders. "W-what..did you say?"

"I'm not going to repeat myself, Merlin," Arthur said teasingly, kissing his lips again.

Tears of happiness swelled up in his eyes and smile spread over his face as he kiss his prince back. Arthur loved him! He had said it out loud! It's the best thing he had ever heard.

"Aren't you going to tell me you love me too?" Arthur said, half-teasing and half-serious.

Merlin smiled tauntingly. "I will tell you when you least expected."

The prince gaped in disbelief and grabbed hold of his manservant, lifting him up to the bed. "Then I will have to make love to you until you say it."

Merlin laughed happily as his prince bent down to kiss him again.

* * *

Hanthur had been running through the forest swiftly all night, searching for his parents and hoping to find them in time before anything happened. Evelyn was running behind him - despite her fragile look she was as fast as Hanthur. Dawn was breaking on the horizon when they found an old man wondering in the middle of the wood. Hanthur took out his sword, knowing there was more than the eye could see. The man was not human, and therefore could be dangerous.

The old man simply turned around, smiling at them. "Ah, you're finally here, Hanthur Pendragon," he said and then turned to the girl. "And Evelyn Greene, daughter of Priestess Lilith and Sir Knight Kay."

The future prince turned to the girl himself, another surprised expression plastered on his face. She smiled lopsidedly and guiltily at him, knowing she needed to explain herself to him later. As much as Hanthur wanted to asked questions, now was not the time - he needed to be cautious about the old man.

"Who are you?"

"I am Taliesin," he answered and Evelyn gasped at the name but Hanthur still look confused. His mother never spoke to him about a man name Taliesin before. "I see that you don't belong in this time, young prince."

Evelyn's eyes widened in surprise. "You're a prince?"

Hanthur rolled his eyes. "It's a long story."

"Indeed, it is," said Taliesin and moved a little closer to the young ones but Hanthur still wouldn't put down his sword. "Because you have broken the law of the universe, history has changed itself."

"What is he talking about?" Evelyn asked.

Hanthur knows exactly what the old man is saying but he doesn't want to speak to two strangers about his mission of coming back to the past.

"Do you know where my parents are?"

Taliesin smile, eyes twinkling like stars. "They were saved by a druid family and took shelter nearly three miles that way," he replied and pointed to the east.

Hanthur nodded at Evelyn to go ahead first and she did. He took another cautious look at the old man and ran after her but he stopped as he heard a voice echo into his head.

"_...you may have broken the law of the Universe in order to change history, Hanthur Pendragon...but you can never go against Fate..."_

He turned back to the old man. Glowing grey eyes met his blues ones, before suddenly, images of the death of his father were playing in his head. It was as if he was there.

The place was rooftop on the tallest tower in the castle. A staff was placed in the middle of the roof and a storm was swirling out from it. Haunting screams and the strong smell of blood fill the air as he spotted Arthur, a much older Arthur fighting another man; Mordred. "

Father..." he whispered as he saw the king bring down Mordred with Excalibur.

"He won," Hanthur stated, even more confused about what he was being shown.

"Arthur!"

Hanthur twisted around to the voice just as Merlin ran past him, not even noticing his existence.

"Mother," he breathed, turning to look at his parents as they embraced each other.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Arthur demanded, though he looked relieved. "I told you not to come here! It's dangerous!"

"You know I can never leave you alone."

Arthur shook his head disapprovingly at his life-partner's action, but he pulled the warlock in for another embrace. "Where is our son?"

Merlin's smile was exactly as it had always been. "He is safe with Gaius."

Still, the king didn't stop frowning. "You never do what you are told."

"You should know that by now," the warlock said teasingly and held onto his king tightly. Neither of them had time to react before a sword went straight through Arthur's heart and only maimed Merlin's arm.

"Arthur!" The warlock screamed as he caught his lover's body.

"NO!" Hanthur yelled as he witnessed a dying Mordred kill his father in front of his mother. He tried to reach his arms out to them, but the scene vanished into a white mist and he appeared back into the forest. The old man was gone and he was alone once again. There were tears trailing down his face as he realized that he was crying.

"_...You see, young Pendragon..."_ the voice still echoed inside his head. _"...Arthur and Mordred are destined to die together...As for Merlin and Morgana...as long as one shall live the other shall die...they cannot exist in the same world...and that is their fate..."_

Hanthur sniffed and wiped his tears away, shaking his head in denial.

"I will change that fate. I will _not_ let it happen!" He promised out loud. The old man's presence had vanished though, there were no more whispers in his mind.

"You just watch me. I will change that fate even if it kills me."

* * *

Arthur's eyes fluttered open with a soft groan and as he looked up, he realized that he was holding a naked Merlin in the uncomfortable bed. He quickly sat up, realizing that he was also naked. He tried to move from the bed but the younger man snuggled closer. He blinked, his mouth falling open, as he witnessed the marks on his manservant's body, all over. Arthur tried to think what had happen the night before, but all he got was a blank memory and a terrible throbbing pain ripping through his head.

Feeling a little nauseous, Arthur got off the bed, gathered his clothes, and left the hut. He went back to the river and as he washed his body, he realized that there were marks around his chest, torso, arms, and other varies places. After he was dressed, he sat on a boulder and tried to think back again to what had happened, but he received nothing apart from another wave of pain. He wondered what happened and how he didn't remember anything after he had drunk from the water pouch.

"The water pouch," he whispered as he realized it must be something to do with that, it was the only explanation. He stood up from where he had been sitting and walked back towards the hut when a hand grabbed his shoulder. He was startled when his eyes met Hanthur's.

"Hanthur?" he said in surprise.

"Arthur," the raven-hair boy sighed in relief. "We were so worried!" He looked around for the warlock but he was nowhere in sight. "Where's Merlin?"

* * *

Merlin woke up when he heard Arthur rush out from the hut.

"Arthur?" he called as he slowly sat up, but winced as he felt the throbbing pain in his backside. He lay back down, blushing as he remembered the night before. They did it four times. He knew they should've stopped after the first but Arthur had said he loved him. Arthur loved him! He smiled happily as he felt the warmth in his heart. He slowly caressed the bite mark on his collarbone. He belonged to Arthur, it was there for everyone to see.

He heard a movement coming from outside. He thought it was Arthur initially, but there seemed to be more than one person. Quickly, he picked up his clothes and put them on, despite the pain in his backside. He grabbed Arthur's sword and held it defensively as a shadow loomed across the entrance. A large bald man with an ugly scar running across his face came in, smiling, and Merlin's eyes widened in fear. Then two other large men—one with long curly orange hair and other with short red hair—followed him in and Merlin gulped. "

Oh, look what we've found." They grinned at him and Merlin could see they had some missing teeth.

"He is a beaut, boss," said the one with orange curly hair.

"Don't come near me," Merlin hissed but they only laughed as the red-headed one swiftly moved forward and took the sword from him with ease. With no weapon, Merlin knew that magic was his only defense left.

One tried to grab him but Merlin dodged him, jumping away and swinging out with the first weapon he could get his hands on – the kettle that had been standing innocently in the corner. Before he noticed anyone moving, the bald boss slammed one of his fists across his face and Merlin fell to the ground, blood trailing from his lip.

The men lunged forward, holding him down with ease. Merlin struggled, but he was weaker than them, physically he was no match. Terror suddenly filled his consciousness as he realised what they were planning to do to him. He tried to think of something, anything to get him out of this, but his mind had gone blank with fear.

"Get away from him!" He heard Arthur's voice scream, and before he knew it, his limbs were released and pitiful screams filled the air. Finally, he slowly stood up and found both Arthur and Hanthur standing in the mist of three dead bodies. Both of them have an identical angry, yet worried looks on their faces as they made their way to him.

"Merlin!" Arthur pushed Hanthur from the way and pulled Merlin into an tight embrace. "Are you alright?"

Still petrified from what happen, Merlin couldn't bring himself to move away from the prince and raised his arms to hold him back. As soon as Arthur pulled away, Hanthur took over the embracing for he is as worry about Merlin as Arthur. Merlin tried to pull away from the boy but he wouldn't budge. The manservant can see anger in his master's eyes.

Just as Merlin finally pushed Hanthur away, Leon came in along with the other two knights.

"What happened?" the blond knight exclaimed, staring about him at the bodies and the body language of everyone in the room.

"Bandits," answered Arthur as he moved away from them before turning back to his manservant. "Are you okay?"

Merlin nodded and the prince turned to leave the hut. Just before he is out, he saw Hanthur was holding Merlin's hand and Merlin didn't seem to be pulling away from the boy either. His heart ached from seeing the sight and as Merlin caught his glaring, he did his best to hide his feeling with his stoic face. He was so busy hiding his conflicting emotions he completely forgot about the water pouch.

Arthur didn't say a word to Merlin the whole way back to Camelot, despite Merlin's attempts at making conversation. With having no idea that the prince didn't remember anything that had happened the night before, Merlin could only assume it was something to do with Hanthur and how jealous Arthur had been acting. He wanted to tell Arthur that he loved him, that Hanthur meant nothing like that. But that was hard to do when Arthur wouldn't look at him.

When they arrived at the castle, Gwen came out to greet Arthur with a worried look on her face but she didn't kiss or hug the prince. Their relationship was supposed to be a secret. He smiled to assure her that he was okay before ordering Merlin to take the horses back to the stable. Merlin frowned at the command since he really wanted to talk to Arthur but he obeyed.

As he was taking the prince's and his horses toward the stable, he looked back and he saw Arthur chatting happily with the maid as they walking up the steps to the castle. Merlin wasn't sure if Arthur was doing this on purpose or whether his feelings for Gwen were still genuine. He shook his head at to the thought and reminded himself that Arthur was not that type of person to be as cruel as fooling around with Merlin's feelings. But then he saw Gwen put her hand on the prince's forearm and his body jolted in jealousy when Arthur made no movement to remove her hand.

Hanthur popped up right beside him, making him jump.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," he apologized, looking in the same direction as Merlin and seeing Arthur and Gwen together.

"Did something happen between you and Arthur?" Hanthur asked, trying to sound casual but his mind was on the water pouch.

Merlin shook his head. "No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," Merlin said calmly, trying not to snap at the boy.

Hanthur saw how troubled his mother's face looked and was about to say something when Leon approached and clap a heavy hand on his shoulder.

"Hanthur, Arthur requested you join him in the training ground," said the knight, polite as normal.

Merlin looked at Hanthur in concern. Arthur might try to hurt the boy again because of their hug that morning. The naïve boy nodded and turned to the manservant.

"I will be back." He said and was about to leave but Merlin pulled him back.

"Are you sure it's safe?"

Hanthur give him a confused look. "Why wouldn't it be?"

Merlin bit his bottom lip nervously, not wanting to tell Hanthur what happen between him and Arthur. Hanthur was already acting negatively toward his father kissing the maid, how will he react if he found that Arthur and him had sex? A knight calling to Leon and Hanthur to come over to the training brought him back to reality.

"I will be fine," the boy said confidently to the warlock with a reassuringly smile before running after Leon.

Quickly as he can, Merlin took the horses back to the stable and asked another servant to unsaddled them before following Hanthur into the training ground. When he arrived, the fight was over already. Arthur was standing over Hanthur with his sword near the boy's neck.

"What happen?" Merlin asked one of the maids who had been watching.

The maid turned to him, smiling excitingly.

"Gaius's grandson fought so well with His Highness! He almost beat the prince. but of course, no one ever defeated him!" She squealed and turned back to the two handsome, almost look-a-like men.

Merlin looked back to them as Arthur helped Hanthur back to his feet. Hanthur spotted Merlin in the crowd and waved happily at him. Merlin forced a smile for the boy before looking at the prince. Arthur gave Merlin a dark glare before walking off. Merlin didn't like that look from the prince and ran after him. Curious, Hanthur followed.

"Arthur!" Merlin said as he ran after the walking prince.

"Arthur, wait." He pulled his prince back but let go as he saw how angry Arthur looked. "There is nothing between me and Hanthur."

The prince tried to look as if he didn't care. "And you're telling me this because?"

"I thought that you...might get the wrong idea."

He sighed. "Merlin, it's really not my business to know who you are sleeping with."

Merlin's eyes narrowed at Arthur, confused. "What are you trying to say here?"

Arthur shrugged. "I'm a guy like you too, Merlin. I know that every guys needs a release once in a while. If you are doing it with men or women, it's really not my business. So really, you don't need to report about your private life to me," he said with a smirk as he ruffled the dark hair of the confounded younger man.

Seeing Arthur's smirk, Merlin felt a wave of hurt rush through him. "A release?"

Oblivious to his manservant's expression, he nodded. "Yeah, you know like when you-"

Merlin stopped him by cover his mouth, blushing. "Yes, yes, I know what it meant," he said quickly and let go of the prince. "But does that mean last night...?"

"Oh last night," Arthur clasped his hands together as he remembered he was going to ask Merlin about it but then he also remembered the marks on their bodies. He wanted to ask but then a little voice sounding like Uther's voice echoing in the back of his mind, reminding him that he is a prince and he has royal duties to attend to. "It mean we should forget it."

He regretted saying it at once as he saw Merlin's face crumple and fall into despair, his lower lip trembling whilst tears swelled up in those deep blue eyes.

"Forget it?" Merlin asked in a shaky voice and Arthur stood frozen on where he is standing, wondering what did he do or say to Merlin to make him act like this. Was it something he had done? Was it something _they_ had done? But no matter how hard he tried to remember, he couldn't.

Arthur froze for too long though, for by the time he made to move again, Merlin had already left.

But lurking in a corner, Hanthur felt a wave of despair rush through him.

**TBC**

* * *

**A/N:** So what do you think? Let me know :D


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Merlin (sadly).

**Rated:** M, for good reason...Mpreg :D

******Special Thanks to:** ScheiGuy for helping me with the editing :D

**A/N:** Okay, I'm apologize for taking so long to update this chapter. I already have like three chapters done but there is a lot that have been going around with switching beta. But I'm settling with the awesome beta ScheiGuy so I should be able to update regularly on this story. Again, I am so sorry for the long wait for this story.

* * *

Chapter 7

Alton put on his robe as he rushed to the sound of the pounding on the door. As he opened it, Evelyn strolled in angrily, throwing the water pouch onto the table. "What's wrong, my Lady? Did it not go according to plan?" he asked, closing the door.

"No, Leon gave the water pouch to someone else," she grumbled, pacing back and forth restlessly. "And they drank it all up, too."

"Oh no," he said, genuinely sympathizing with her loss. "What do you want me to do now?"

She looked to the older man sadly. "I don't know, Uncle."

He smiled warmly and went to give her a hug. "Why don't I try to get you a job as a maid in Sir Leon's home mansion?" he suggested. "I mean…maybe Leon will come around and fall in love with you the natural way instead."

"I don't want him to fall in love with me, Uncle. Well…at least not right now. He could get killed if I was discovered to be a magical being," she said as she pulled away. Then she jolted up as she remembered Hanthur. "Leon is friends with Hanthur."

Alton give her a confuse look. "What?"

She shrugged. "He is kind of dumb. Maybe…I can somehow trick him into helping me," she said, her eyes lighting up with pure, evil hope. Then she walked out before Alton could say anything to her.

* * *

"Are you sure everything is okay with you and Arthur? You two seemed tense at the training ground," Hanthur asked for the twentieth time since Merlin returned to their little room in the clinic. After he had overheard his parents' argument, he thought Evelyn's enchantment probably didn't work. If that were the case then it would mean his father has rejected his mother. Although, the expression that his father wore when he saw Merlin in a distressed state didn't seem as if he was that heartless.

"Yes, for the hundredth time," Merlin said, rolling his eyes and turning his back to the boy.

As Hanthur was chatting away about how worried he was – even though he knew the warlock was no longer listening – he recognized a moving shadow on the wall. He sat up from the bed and turned to the window, and he saw two large green eyes peeking in. He knew instantly the eyes belonged to Evelyn.

Meanwhile, as Hanthur went on about how worried he was, Merlin _was_ in fact no longer listening. He turned to change his sleeping position when he felt a pain on his left collarbone. He reached his hand to touch the bite mark; the pain from the bite proved to him that what happened between his prince and him wasn't a dream, but undeniably real. Then the memory of how Arthur darted him with an angry look that was almost related to the jealous one when Hanthur would hug Merlin, making him feel a little bit responsible for Arthur's cold attitude towards him. He presumed Arthur probably only said what he had said out of anger – maybe he didn't mean it. He stood up quickly and had the urge to go to Arthur's chamber to ask questions.

Hanthur gave the warlock a quizzically look as he just stood up. "Merlin, are you okay?"

Without answering, Merlin just walked out.

As soon as his mother was no longer in the room and he was sure Gaius was already sleeping, he opened the window and Evelyn jumped in. "It's a good thing he hasn't mastered his powers yet or he would have noticed me floating outside the window for hours now," she said and flopped onto the uncomfortable bed.

"What are you doing here?" Hanthur asked curiously, walking over to the cabinet, slowly and carefully picking up the sword that lay on top of it.

"I thought you would want to know whether or not your precious prince and Merlin drank-" She stopped as soon as he drew his sword and placed it to her neck, icy-ocean blue eyes piercing into hers.

"Don't lie to me, Evelyn Greene. What is your true motive for being here?" he demanded unemotionally, but her lips remained sealed tight as if she was daring him to cut her throat, which he wouldn't hesitate to do. But, killing her wouldn't give him any pleasure. Instead, he pulled back and sheathed his sword. "If you're not interested in telling me, get out."

She sat up from the bed and walked toward to the window, but suddenly paused and turned back to face him. "I thought you were different but apparently I was wrong."

"Wrong about what? We hardly know each other."

"I overheard what you have said to Prince Arthur – that you have no desire to hate us magical creatures – but you seem to have no interest in wanting to trust us, either."

He walked closer to her, making her retreat backwards. "I think you've misinterpreted what I have said, little mermaid. In my conversation with the prince, I mentioned_ nothing_ about choosing sides between magic and Uther's ridiculous law. I'm just stating my opinion that magic can be used for good or evil. I never confirmed any loyalty for magic or anti-magic," he replied, turning away from her. "Plus, you are not as innocent as you claim to be. I know you are here to trick me into getting closer to Sir Leon."

She smirked. "So you know?"

"Of course I know. Your obsession with him is hard to miss," he snarled, turning back to face her with his arms crossing. "But you can forget about asking for my assistance. I have no interest in your _outrageous_ plotting of raping."

"You talk as if you've never thought about intercourse before," she scorned.

He tilted his head up with his finger rubbing on his chin thoughtfully. The reason he had never thought of having sex for eighteen years was because he had never had the time to meet anyone else other than the knights. How could he when _everyday_ he was forced to fight for his life? But, there was this one time he remembered he was tempted to kiss Sir Gwaine when the knight was napping but he shook the memory from his head. "No," he answered dryly. "So please don't put me in the same category as you."

She glared at him, unconvinced. "Really?" She risked walking towards him until they were only inches apart, but her eyes never left the sword he was still holding. She tried to use one of her own specialty magics to detect his emotions but strangely it didn't work. "You're lying," she accused although she wasn't sure. "I'm sure a handsome lad like you has had _plenty_ of sex," she said seductively, caressing his cheek.

He harshly slapped her hand away. "Leave here, little mermaid, before I change my mind about killing you," he said warningly.

She rolled her eyes and finally retreated toward the window. "Oh, by the way – thought you ought to know – the enchantment that was put inside the water pouch didn't work on that servant boy. His magic is too great for this weak spell." Without waiting for a response from the time-traveling prince, she jumped out and disappeared.

Meanwhile, that little bit of information finally put the last pieces of the complicated puzzle together, explaining the…_weird _encounters between his father and mother. Hanthur grimaced. He began pacing around the room for a few long minutes before he finally decided to go find Merlin and tell him the truth.

* * *

Arthur didn't see Merlin for the rest of the day. He knew he could barge into the clinic and drag Merlin's lazy arse back to work, but how could he when the younger man was obviously upset? After all the useless excuses he came up for the love marks on his body, he finally admitted it to himself: he and Merlin _definitely_ slept together. _How am I going to fix this now_? Heaving a heavy sigh, he swept his large hands over his face, infuriated with himself as he remembered the miserable face his manservant made before he ran off. This was, _by far,_ the worst thing Arthur has ever done in his entire life. He knew he has _never_ considered Merlin as a just a friend or a mere servant, but someone who held a very special place in his heart.

Knowing where his thoughts were leading him to, he tried to shake them out from his head. He mentally reminded himself that he was the _heir_ to _the throne of Camelot_, and he too will need an heir to rule the kingdom in the future. His duty to his people prevented him from admitting his true feelings for Merlin to everyone else…even himself.

Swallowing hard, he silently decided to keep his distance from Merlin from this night on. But as the door opened and Arthur jumped up, hoping to see Merlin in front of him, he was disappointed when it was not his manservant. "Gwen," he said, trying to hide his letdown. He felt like kicking himself in the arse for hoping after he had just decided to keep his distance from his manservant. Also, he _should_ feel happy to see his lover.

"Sire, your father sent me to remind you that you are to have dinner with him and the Lady Morgana in the dining hall," she said politely.

Arthur smiled warmly to her and nodded.

She returned the smile, and was about to leave when Arthur rushed over to her and pulled her back, closing the door behind them. "Arthur," she said, completely startled as the prince began to kiss her greedily on the mouth. She was surprised by his aggressive behavior but she eventually gave in to him and kissed back.

Then the door swung open without a knock, freezing the lovers in their place, as Merlin strolled in. Merlin's eyes were widened from the shock and unadulterated _pain_ at the sight of the aura of intimacy between the prince and the maid. As his eyes met Arthur's, all he saw was guilt and nothing more. He turned away. "I'm sorry," he apologized, and closed the door.

Arthur felt the urge to run after Merlin, but after he took three steps forward he stopped. He knew _exactly_ what was going to happen if he went after his manservant. He _knew _he wouldn't able to stop himself from revealing his true feelings.

Gwen looked as if her heart was going to stop. "Thank God it's only Merlin. I thought for sure it was Uther," she said, terror coating her voice, but the prince remained unmoved. "Arthur?" She took a step towards the prince.

He worked his jaw and turned to Gwen with a convincing, forced grin. "Well, _that_ will teach him not to walk on us anymore," he said, and she sighed in relief. Arthur chuckled as he leaned down to kiss Gwen again, attempting to avoid his terribly aching heart telling him that what he was doing is wrong.

Meanwhile, Merlin was still standing behind the door. He heard Gwen telling Arthur about how afraid she was that she thought it was Uther who came in. "Well,_ that_ will teach Merlin not to walk in on us anymore," he heard his prince said. Gwen laughed alongside her prince, as if were the most natural thing in the world to do. Then the silence of their voices told him that they were probably continuing where they left off. Though he wanted to control the tears that threatened to fall from his eyes, gravity betrayed him, and they flowed down. He never knew what heartbreak felt like until now.

Hanthur was strolling down the halls of the castle, looking for Merlin. He didn't think he would find the warlock standing in front of the prince's chambers. As he was about to approach him, he halted as he saw tears in Merlin's eyes, and the pain on his face was unbearable. Hanthur wanted to walk over and offer his mother some kind of comfort but he knew there was nothing he could do to dissolve that pain away.

Then Merlin wiped the tears away and walked down the corridor back to the clinic. Hanthur wanted to follow but he knew the warlock would want to be alone right now.

Merlin was actually glad the room was empty. As soon as he closed the bedroom door a sob escaped from his lips and he slumped against the door and slid down. He pulled his knees up, resting his head on them as giant waves of hot tears rolled down from his eyes. His chest hurt more than he ever thought possible; it was very hard to breathe, but all he could do was cry.

* * *

The bite mark was still there when Merlin touched his collarbone the next morning. The memory of his one night with his prince came back, which was supposed to feel like a blessing, but actually felt more like a nightmare. He craved his prince's touches and kisses but Arthur made it clear that it was just one night by kissing Gwen last night. He barely had any sleep and his body felt very exhausted as he sat up from the futon. He looked over to the bed to find it hadn't been slept in, which led him to wonder where the time-traveling prince had been all night.

He sighed a great sigh, and as he stood up to get out from his room he paused as he felt like the room was spinning. He closed his eyes and touched his skin, noticing it was a bit warmer than usual. He slowly made his way out the door and into the clinic. He found Gaius was already up and making potions at one of the many messy tables. The physician was so into what he was making that he didn't notice Merlin came out to wash up.

"Merlin," he finally said, turning towards his surrogate son. "If you're not- _Whoa_! What happened to you?" The old physician gasped as he noticed the color of Merlin's skin had drained away, and his eyes were impossibly red and puffy.

The young warlock smiled faintly. "Had a rough night." He managed to cross the room and pass Gaius toward the door but the physician pulled him back. "Where do you think you're going looking like that?"

"Arthur will be mad if his breakfast is late."

Gaius frowned at him and forced his surrogate son down on a chair. "You're not going to work in that condition. I'll go inform the prince that you are sick and won't be able to serve him today," he said sternly as he went to one of the cabinets and took out a green vial. He handed it to Merlin. "Drink this. It will make you feel better." The warlock nodded as he took the vial from the physician. He drank it swiftly, causing his face to scrunch up at the horrible taste. "Now – go rest while I go tell Arthur," Gaius said and went out the door.

Usually, Merlin would stop Gaius and leave to serve Arthur anyway. But right now he felt like he wasn't ready to face Arthur. He did do a lot of thinking when he was not busy crying last night. He did want to walk back out from his room to Arthur's room and confront him but then what if Arthur rejected him? _Then what_? If that was the case, what was there for Merlin to do? There was only one answer to that: _leave Camelot_. And what if Arthur accepted him? Even if it came to that it wouldn't change anything. Merlin still can't give Arthur an heir. _I can't give the prince anything_.

He slowly turned his eyes to his hands, as if they held the answers to all questions everywhere. Arthur's confession made him thought he'd actually meant something to him, other than _an idiot manservant_. Now he felt like he was back at the beginning with nothing. He felt so worthless and stranded as the tears began to swell up in his eyes again.

Then the door slowly opened and he blinked back the tears as he turned away from whoever just walked in. Even without looking, he knew it was Hanthur as the boy took a seat next to him without an invitation. "You appear to be under a lot of stress since our return yesterday," said Hanthur.

Merlin didn't answer for he knew his voice would crack if he were to open his mouth.

"I know things seem bad now, but they _will_ get better," he promised, which left the warlock questioning but he didn't reply. "You know, sometimes we think that since we can close our eyes to the things we don't want to see, we can do the same with our heart." Merlin finally turned to look at Hanthur. "But, we're wrong. We can never close our hearts to the things we don't want to feel."

Merlin's lips thinned and closed his eyes as he let the tears fall freely down his face, knowing all too well that it was the truth. He didn't know why the boy was saying this to him but it seemed to be the right thing to hear. He loved Arthur and he wanted Arthur to love him in return. But even that seemed too much to ask for.

Hanthur couldn't bear to see the man who will be his mother so heart-broken. He hated himself for not finding his parents in time. He wanted to blame Evelyn but that would be the way of cowardice. He knew it was partly his fault since he did let his guard down. There are other threats to his parents than just Morgana and her minions. He needed to be more cautious from here on out, but for now, all he could do was put his arms around his mother's shoulders and comfort him.

* * *

When Gaius returned to his clinic, Hanthur was coming out from Merlin's bedroom. "Where is Merlin?"

"Sleeping," he answered.

The boy looked so weary, as if he hadn't sleep all night, which made the physician knew he had to ask about it. "What happened during the hunt? You and Merlin have been acting sort of odd ever since you came back."

Hanthur gulped and told everything to the old man: the behavior he gave toward Merlin to push his father to reveal his feelings to him; meeting Evelyn and the trouble with the water pouch that caused the intimacy between his parents, which left his father with no memory of it and his mother heart-broken. By the end of the explanation, he realized that he was probably the person who started all of this. If he hadn't tried to get Arthur to be jealous, Arthur wouldn't have run off and Merlin wouldn't have chased after the royal prat with Evelyn's water pouch, and then none of this would have happened. He felt even more ashamed of himself.

By the end of his explanation, Gaius slapped the back of Hanthur's head, which earned a growl from the future prince as he rubbed the pain away. "That is why I told you to leave it alone, Hanthur. Now you see what happens when you do not listen?"

"I just want them to be together. Is that so bad?"

"It is when it is not the time for them to reveal such a thing. Merlin and Arthur have to come to their feelings at their own pace. You can not force it."

Hanthur sighed and sat down. "Now what should I do? I came back to correct the error of history…but it seems like I'm just making new ones."

The old physician finally took a seat next to the young boy. "Nobody is perfect, Hanthur. You are bound to make mistakes. But for now, just let Merlin and Arthur come to their feelings on their own, okay?"

The time-traveling prince smiled understandingly and finally gave in. "Yeah."

"Now," Gaius started after a long silence. "Tell me more about this Evelyn girl."

Hanthur sat up, straightening his back with an elbow resting on his knees. "Well, from what I know she has no interest in Arthur, or Merlin, _or_ Camelot. She is one-third eel mermaid, one-third human, and half a seer witch, who happens to be obsessed with Sir Leon."

"One-third eel mermaid," the physician said questioningly and Hanthur nodded.

"Yeah, that's correct," he replied and stared at his surrogate grandfather's face as it went from peachy to pale white. "Gaius? What's happened to your face?"

Gaius rose up from his seat and went over to a bookshelf and picked up a book. He opened it and turned a few pages before he landed on a page about mermaids. "Eel mermaids are magical creature that live under trenches and caves in the sea. They have a very sensitive awareness of magic..." The physician paused as he stumbled onto something and looked up to the curious time-traveling prince. "Ah, it is as I feared. The last time any human or magical being has ever seen an eel mermaid was nearly three hundred years ago."

Hanthur moved towards the physician. "What does that mean?"

"If this _Evelyn_ claims to be an eel mermaid, she would have been at least three hundred years old." Both of them exchanged disbelieving looks. "Are you sure that is all you know about this girl? Nothing else?"

Hanthur nodded but stopped as he remembered the old wizard he encountered in the woods. "Wait – no. When I was searching through the woods for my parents I met a wizard…ugh… What was his name?" The young prince pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes as he tried to remember. "His name was something like…a _sin_ at the end..." He paused for a moment, face scrunched-up in thought, before: "_Ah_!" he exclaimed, causing Gaius to jump and nearly fall dead of a heart attack. "Taliesin. _Yes_, Taliesin, and he said 'Evelyn Green, daughter of Priestess Lilith and Sir Knight Kay.'" He turned back to the old physician with a fairly happy face but stopped as he realized how the physician went from looking pale to green now. "Are you okay?"

"Taliesin… You saw the wizard Taliesin?" he asked. "Are you sure it was not someone who is just using his name?"

Hanthur thought back to that place and time. He could still remember the powerful magic conquering the atmosphere in the woods, and the vision of his father's death in which the old wizard let him see. "No, I don't think he is a hoax. I've faced great power of magic before, barely escaping _with_ _my life_ from some of them. What I have encountered with this wizard is nothing like them – it was much greater."

The information was too overwhelming for Gaius' old body to handle and his knees gave out on him. Hanthur caught him in time and had to help him to sit on the nearest chair. "Who is he? Is he important?"

Gaius nodded as he leaned over to the table, mixing a potion for himself. "He was the High Court Sorcerer during Bruther's reign- Wait. Evelyn is the daughter of Priestess Lilith and Sir Knight Kay, you said?"

Hanthur looked at the old physician, confused. "Yeah, so?"

"Priestess Lilith was an ancient priestess from the old religion who also helped Taliesin during the Great War. If what you told me is true about what Taliesin had said…then this Evelyn girl might not be an ordinary witch."

"Could it just a coincidence?"

Gaius grimly shook his head. "Priestess Lilith was married to Sir Knight Kay. He was the fourth son of Lady Anne and the Fisher King, who was an eel merman. It is too much to be a coincidence."

"_The Fisher King_? The same Fisher King that lived in the Perilous Lands?"

"Yes. And according to rumors, a curse was put upon him when he received a fatal injury from another powerful dark wizard named Cornelius Sigan: it prevented him from returning to the sea," Gaius explained. "Where is this girl now? Is she still in Camelot?"

"Last time I saw her, yeah," answered Hanthur.

"You should go look for her."

"Why?"

"Hanthur. Among many dark tales of magic, one of them tells a story of how the Fisher King took something important from Cornelius Sigan's keeps, after Taliesin killed him, but no one knows for sure what it was. Some say it was the Immortal Blade of Balor, others say the Cup of Life from Dagda, but in the midst of those rumors, one stated that the Fisher King took the Book of Shadows."

As the boy processed the information he soon became as pale as Gaius. "Morgana obtained an ancient book of the old religion that contained great dark spells. Do you think that this little mermaid might have this Book of Shadows?" he asked.

"It is possible."

In an instant, Hanthur sprinted towards the door. intending to find the witch. "Then I will go find her and bring her here for questioning."

Gaius nodded in agreement as the boy walked past him. "That will be the safest route – but how are you going to find her?"

Hanthur just gave the old physician a mischievous grin. "I know exactly where to find her."

"Oh, Hanthur," he said, stopping the boy from going through the door. "If what she told you is true then make her to make a promise with you."

"Why is that?"

"When mermaids make promises, they can not back out from them. If they do, they will pay a dear price for it. Make her promise that she will not bring harm to the people of Camelot."

Hanthur nodded and walked out.

* * *

Arthur paced back and forth in his room for a good hour, debating whether or not he should go see Merlin. It was not very princely for a prince to visit his servant when they were sick, and it broke all the mental rules he set for himself to stay away from Merlin, but he was very worried about the idiot. For another five minutes of fighting with his inner-self, he finally walked up to the clinic and knocked on the door. When he heard Gaius telling him to come in, he opened the door and walked in. The old physician was mixing a potion as he looked up. "Oh, sire. Do you need something?" he said, putting the potion down.

The prince looked around for any sign of his manservant but there was none. "I was just wondering if you…happened to have any medicine for a headache," he lied.

Gaius studied the prince closely, knowing that he came to see how Merlin was doing. He sighed and wished that Arthur could be more honest with his feelings, but Arthur seemed to have received his stubbornness from Uther. "No, but I can make one. I just need to go buy some herbs." He walked past the prince and to the door. "I will be back and make you one. It will only take a few minutes."

Arthur nodded and gave the old physician a thankful smile for not questioning him. As soon as Gaius left, Arthur made his way to Merlin's room. He found his manservant sleeping on the bed that looked very uncomfortable. He moved closer to find that the color on his manservant's ivory skin had become paler – if that is even possible. He reached out a hand to touch Merlin's skin, seeing if he was suffering from a fever, but as soon as the skin touched skin pictures of Merlin's naked body holding onto him, sucking his muscular neck as Arthur thrust into him popped into his mind. He jerked away from Merlin as if he was being burned.

He blinked, wondering if the pictures were actually memories. A little disturbed by it all he walked out from the room just as Gaius came in. The old physician gave him a curious look and Arthur couldn't look at him in the eyes. "Are you checking on Merlin, sire? He will be fine by tomorrow."

"Good," Arthur said and crossed the room towards the door.

"Sire, do you need your-" Before he could finish the prince had already left.

Arthur was going towards his room but he stopped, as he knew that if he were to enter his room he would start thinking about Merlin again. He needed to go to the training ground to keep his mind off of Merlin.

* * *

Evelyn gave an annoyed sigh at the sight of Hanthur coming to Sir Leon's family home, a mansion outside of Camelot. She was helping some other maids with carrying water inside for Sir Leon's mother's bath.

The other maids who were with her shot Hanthur a few seductive looks as he arrived, but his eyes were directed only at the blond cat-eyed girl. "Hi, Evelyn. I need to talk to you," he said and took her arm rather forcefully. They could hear the other girls groan in disappointment as he took her away from curious eyes.

"What are you doing here?" she hissed as they moved toward the stable.

"There are some things that you still haven't explained to me," he said, pulling her along. "And you should be flattered, it's about you."

She pulled her arm away and halted both of them from walking any further. They were standing on the side of a dirt road but there was no one around. "What? If it is about me, what does it have to do with anything? I already told you I have no interest in taking over Camelot."

"Yes, I know. Your world revolves around Sir Leon only but… Well, there is something confusing about what you've told me," he said. "I mean you said that you are an eel mermaid but an eel mermaid has not been seen by human eyes for three hundred years."

She sighed in annoyance, rolling her eyes before meeting eye-to-eye with Hanthur. "Okay, so I'm not _exactly_ eighteen years old," she admitted. "I'm actually five hundred years old."

Hanthur backed away from the witch, open-mouthed, giving her a disbelieving expression. "What? But how could that be? You're-"

She glared at him crossly. "It's a long story, raven boy," she snapped and turned back to where they came from. "Now, if that is all you are here to ask about then you better leave before I change my mind about destroying Camelot!"

He scoffed as if he would let that happen. Then he sighed and turned to follow her. "Hey. _Hey_!" He halted her from going any further. She _tsked_ and looked away from him, crossing her arms. "I'm sorry," he apologized with a convincing earnest tone and she glowered at him suspiciously but he looked genuine. "I have been acting like a complete ass, haven't I?"

She snorted and nodded.

"Look," he moved closer to her. "How about we help each other out?"

"What do you mean?" she asked curiously.

He smirked. "You remember the wizard we met in the woods, don't you?" he asked and she nodded. "Well, it seems you know something about him."

She shrugged. "Maybe."

"Well, I'll tell you what – I want to know some information about him. Why don't you come by the castle in a few days? I will introduce you to Merlin and Gaius and you can tell us whatever you know about this wizard. In return, I can introduce you to Sir Leon."

She beamed. "Really?"

"I can promise you that." He held out his hand to her, smiling confidently. "If you only help me and Merlin in any way you can, without lying or questioning."

She smiled and shook his hand without a second thought. "It's a promise then."

* * *

By the time Merlin woke up, it was already the next morning. His head felt much better and his body was no longer aching by every movement he made. As he sat up from the bed he saw Hanthur sleeping on the futon, filled with books and a burned out candle on the table nearby. The warlock smiled at the sight and went over to pull up the blanket over the boy's body. Then he walked out to find the clinic empty, but there was breakfast made for two on the table. He couldn't help but smile as he made his way to have his breakfast when the door opened and Gwen came in with a bundle of fresh flowers.

"Gwen," he said in a surprised voice. He felt that he had betrayed her for sleeping with the prince. All this time he thought he was the only that was suffering but if Gwen ever found out that her friend and her lover slept together…how would she react? "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I heard that you were sick. I didn't get a chance to stop by yesterday, so..." she looked away blushing and he didn't understand why at first…but then he remembered walking in on her kissing Arthur two nights ago. _And that must have led to_..."I brought flowers."

Merlin forced a smile and took the flowers. "Thank you, Gwen." He went to find a vase for them.

"So…did you know?" she asked, breaking the awkward silence.

He looked up to her. "Know what?"

"That Arthur got Uther's approval to make Hanthur a knight in Camelot."

Merlin's eyes widened with a bright smile on. "Really? I thought Arthur hated him."

She shrugged. "Probably not," she said. "But you can't tell Hanthur. Arthur wants to tell him personally," she said.

The warlock nodded understandingly and an idea came to him with a jolt. "Hey, Gwen – can you do me a favor?"

She nodded. "Sure, what is it?"

* * *

Arthur was eating his breakfast alone as he was trying to read a book that he borrowed from Morgana. Usually he would demand Merlin to stay for breakfast, but when he woke up he found breakfast was already served and his armor taken. The room was empty and he was alone. He didn't like this silence of Merlin but he had to keep his oath. He had already broken it once by visiting him when he was sick in bed.

After he finished his breakfast, Merlin actually came in and Arthur's heart was beating so hard against his chest that he thought it might rip through it. He hadn't seen Merlin since that night the manservant walked in on him kissing Gwen. It was one day but it felt like weeks to Arthur.

"Morning," Arthur greeted, swallowing the enormous lump in his throat, that could or could not be that _stupid_ muscle that pumped his body with blood.

Merlin didn't say anything, just nodded. He walked over to make the bed in silence before he went over to the cupboard and started to pick Arthur's outfit for the day and laid them on the bed.

"So how are you feeling?" Arthur said trying to sound casual but it came out slightly awkward as he walked to his manservant.

"Wonderful," was all he said as he helped the prince dress.

Arthur frowned. "Okay…" He paused to think for a moment. "Look, I am sorry about you walking in on me and Gwen the other night. So stop being a girl over it." He gave Merlin a curious look but the manservant didn't seem to react to his comment. "Or is this about during the hunt?" Merlin paused for a second before continuing and the prince knew that it was. "Can we just forget about it? It's not like it's a big deal, anyway."

Merlin inhaled sharply and blinked his eyes as he felt tears were forming. Arthur became speechless as he caught how sad Merlin became, but his manservant quickly recovered from it. "It's forgotten," he said with a forced smile, still avoiding eye-contact with his prince and finished helping him dress. As he intended to move away, Arthur caught him by the wrist and their eyes met. His eyes averted down to Merlin's lips and he was just _so_ tempted to kiss them.

Then someone cleared his throat by the door and Arthur let go of Merlin's wrist. He looked up to see that it was Sir Leon. "Your presence is needed in the hall, Sire."

Arthur nodded and Leon gave them a curious look before he walked out to wait for the prince. Arthur looked back to Merlin but Merlin wasn't paying attention to him now – he was making the bed. Arthur frowned and walked out from his chamber.

* * *

Hanthur was standing on top of the roof in a tower of the castle, staring down to the people as they were getting on with their daily life. He woke up too late to deliver any potions for Gaius and he couldn't find Merlin anywhere so he could tell him about Evelyn. She was coming into the castle in a few days so she could be properly introduced to Gaius and Merlin.

"You seem bored," came Arthur's voice behind him that made him jump.

"Arthur – I mean, _your highness_," he said quickly as he noticed Uther and Morgana were also with the prince. He tried his best not to show any signs of his hatred toward Morgana. "What did I do to have this honor?"

Uther studied the raven-haired boy cautiously. It wasn't only that he didn't believe the boy was what Gaius claimed him to be, his grandson – there was just _something_ about the boy that made Uther very uncomfortable to be around. Maybe it was because he looked a lot like Arthur, which would give him the spooks no matter what way he looked at it.

When Morgana saw Hanthur, she was forced to take a good second look. "Arthur! He looks _just_ like you."

_Of course I look like him. I'm his son, you bitch _he thought negatively to himself and forced a smile.

Arthur didn't seem too pleased about the comment. "Well, Morgana – what are you suggesting?"

She shrugged.

"Just give him the news," Uther said and he and his ward walked off.

He gave Arthur a confused look. "What news?"

"Well," Arthur patted Hanthur's shoulder proudly. "During the hunt and the fight, you have proved to me that you are worthy to be a knight of Camelot," he said. "Tomorrow morning, my father will hold a coronation for you and three other men that will become knights. Don't disappoint me."

The boy smiled broadly at his father. "But what I've said to you about being swayed by magic, and then you punching me-"

Arthur just ruffled his dark hair. "I would like a knight who is honest with me rather than one who lies to me. And the punch, well, you deserved that."

Hanthur laughed whole-heartedly and Arthur came to realize that he didn't completely hate the boy. "I promise you, Arthur, you will not be disappointed."

The prince nodded with a smile and turned to leave just as Merlin came running past him and hugged Hanthur. "Congratulations!" he cheered and pulled back.

Arthur gaped at his manservant's actions but quickly recovered.

Hanthur gave Merlin a questioning look. "I just got the news right now. How did you know before I did?"

"Gwen told me," he replied, avoiding making eye-contact with the prince who was still standing there. "Let's go to the Yellow Sun Tavern tonight to celebrate this special occasion!"

Arthur finally cleared his throat to make his presence known. "Merlin, did you forget something?"

Merlin didn't want to see the prince for what he said earlier but he forced himself to with a fake smile. "_No_, I didn't forget about you, of course. That is why I asked Gwen to take my place tonight." He winked at the shocked prince. "I'm pretty sure you two have a lot of catching up to do." He intertwined his arms with Hanthur's and smiled mischievously.

Hanthur's eyes widened in surprise toward Merlin's odd behavior. He felt very uncomfortable when he caught Arthur giving them a very dark stare. "Also, I already asked Sir Leon's permission to borrow two of his horses and we will be having a picnic outside of Camelot." Merlin said, looking back to the current prince of Camelot with a confident smile. "I know this one place that is perfect for a picnic." Then back to Hanthur. "So you better get ready, okay?"

Arthur was going to say something but Merlin interrupted him. "I will go prepare the food now." Then he left before the prince could mumble something out. He then turned to Hanthur with a death glare.

"I…I've got to go," Hanthur said nervously and didn't even wait for the prince to response and took off.

As soon as Merlin turned the corner his back slowly slid down the wall and he sighed. He knew he was using Hanthur to get back at Arthur but what the prince said earlier just hurt him so much that he wanted Arthur to feel the same way, too: acting as if he didn't care.

"So," Hanthur said as he popped next to Merlin so suddenly that the warlock jumped. "What was _that _all about?"

The warlock turned away, face slowly reddening as the feeling of guilt climbed up his spine. "Nothing."

Hanthur crossed his arms and looked up as he was thinking. "Hmm… It's almost as if you're in love with Arthur and wanted to make him jealous."

Merlin chuckled nervously. "No, of course not. Why would you think that?" he lied and started to walk away, trying to get away from Hanthur. He knew how the boy reacted toward Gwen and Arthur's relationship and he didn't want him to react the same way towards him, too.

"Well, for one thing," he began. "You've never really liked me touching you casually, but just now that was thrown _far _out the window."

"That doesn't mean anything," he said, picking up the pace of his walking.

Hanthur exhaled, a little bit annoyed and stopped the warlock from walking. "We both know that is a lie, Merlin. You are in love with Arthur."

"And why do you think that?"

"You told so me when you were drunk."

Merlin gaped. "So is that why you have been acting the way you have lately? You're making a _joke_ of me?"

"No, of course not," Hanthur said, defensively. "I'm not laughing at you. Why would I be laughing at someone's love?"

"It's not love," Merlin snapped and continued walking, trying to get away from the boy.

"Why can't you just admit to him that you love him?" Hanthur demanded as he chased after the wizard. "Tell me, Merlin!" He pulled the wizard around to face him again.

Merlin shoved him away. "Because I know that nothing can ever happen between us! You should know since he will be marrying your mother!" he shouted.

Hanthur wanted to blurt out that Merlin was his mother but for some reason he held back on it. "That does not mean my father loved my mother..." he trailed off as Merlin slowly turned to him. He became frustrated with the situation as he just got what he said out loud.

"Arthur didn't marry for love? Is that why you threw a tantrum when you saw Arthur kiss Gwen? Because he showed his affection for someone else?"

"No, no, that's not what I mean..." Hanthur stammered.

"Then you should hate me too...for loving your father," Merlin said and took off in his speed-walking again.

Hanthur sighed, irritated with himself for he had failed his parents yet again.

* * *

**A/N: REVIEWS! REVIEW! REVIEW! :D**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Merlin (sadly).

**Rated:** M, for good reason...Mpreg :D

******Special Thanks to: **ScheiGuy for helping me with the editing :D

**A/N:** HAPPY THANKSGIVING! First of all, I want to thanks all my readers and for all the lovely reviews they took their times to wrote! So I'm giving you Chapter 8 for Thanksgiving day.

**Replies to my reviewers: **

**ScheiGuy:** The reason why it is going on in a slow pace because I'm hoping to build a story that when it will end, my readers will be super sad :D

**Noukon Kitsune: **Thanks...well here is the next chapter and hope you enjoy it :)

**Lientjuhh:** Thank you :D

**christina reid: **Aww...but don't you feel sad for her? I personally feel sad for her because she have no idea what's going on.

**lovestar44:** Sorry, I already written chapter 7, 8, & 9 but I've been having some issue with my beta so that's why it's taking so long. I'm glad you're still interested in the story so thanks.

**Kenya1234: **Yeah, me too. I think Merlin deserve better in the series and other fics. I know this Merlin's character is a bit like the one in the series and other fic too but don't worry. This is just the beginning, Merlin will gradually change into a stronger character-also along with the other characters.

**Luka Knight and Hespera Nova: **I'm glad you two took interest in Hanthur. I was afraid no one like him since no one actually mention anything about him so thanks :D

**Abvgdjka:** lol...I'm sorry that my Arthur is an idiot but this story did take place during season 3 so Arthur isn't that smart then :D

**Millythe96: **Thanks! Keep reviewing and I will keep updating!

* * *

Chapter 8

The taverns outside of Camelot were not as loud as the ones inside. There were only a few different groups of meandering travelers drinking in different corners, looking quite paranoid, and a few merchants making trades with the owner. There were two beautiful young barmaids, one blond and the other brunette, serving drinks behind the bar with a black-haired boy standing on top of an empty beer barrel, playing an ocarina. The two beautiful barmaids were giggling and whispering erotic things as they were giving Merlin their lewdest glares.

Meanwhile, Merlin wasn't paying any attention to them and kept on drinking the cheap beer he ordered. He had only drunk one or two, but with his uncanny skill of not being able to hold his liquor, he was now rightfully buzzed. He knew he could get the same drink from the taverns inside the citadel but he just felt that he _needed_ to get out of _there_ for a few hours: no walking into Arthur kissing the life out of Gwen; no Gaius smothering him with worries; and no edgy tension between him and Hanthur. He was wondering if he should just return to Ealdor for a few days to sort his feelings out. Arthur didn't seem to want to remember what had happened between them.

_Maybe I should leave for good._

He sighed loudly, covering his face with his hands irately as he knew he wouldn't leave, _even_ if his brain was telling him to. "Stupid _dragon_, stupid _destiny_… " He paused to shake his head back and forth, frowning. "_Stupid Arthur_," he cursed under his breath and gulped the rest of his beer from his mug until it was empty. In the corner of his eyes he could see the two barmaids fighting each other, arguing about who should be the lucky lady to refill the warlock's drink.

Then suddenly the door was kicked in, and everyone froze in their place as seven men in black cloaks came in with their heavy black boots pounding on the floor; only one of them was armed with a sword. A large chubby man wiped his hands with a washcloth before he came out from the kitchen – Merlin assumed he was the owner of the bar. He shrugged carelessly and waved a hand to the barmaids to bring forth another mug of beer for him.

"We are here to find a man named Elyan," a very deep, rough and inhuman voice came from one of the newcomers, as the blond barmaid strolled down to Merlin's table. Merlin twisted around to see whom the strange voice belonged to. He tried to identify the face of the newcomer but his eyesight wouldn't really focus.

The bar owner looked placidly with his arms crossed at the newcomer. "I'm sorry, but I ain't _never_ heard of no one by that name." Merlin heard a sword being unsheathed before being thrust into the bar owner's gut. The blond barmaid dropped Merlin's mug and screamed. The screaming was deafening to his large ears before she was also killed by something…_large_ and _furry._

At some point during the commotion of running footsteps and panicked screams Merlin would up on the ground, underneath the table. He blinked a couple of times before his sight became slightly clearer. His eyes widened in fear as he saw six large wolves attack and tear the flesh of the helpless customers and workers. A wolf's face suddenly appeared in front of him and roared. Out of surprise his eyes flashed gold and the wolf flew backwards until it hit the wall. The wolf must have broken its spinal cord – if the ceased movement and blood pouring forth from its mouth were anything to go by. Merlin struggled to get to his feet, but the alcohol wasn't much help, and he staggered back down on his bottom. All the other wolves turned their full attention to the warlock, growling angrily at him for their loss. Merlin noticed one of them did not look like the other. He looked like a hybrid mix – of wolf and human – and he seemed to be the one who was controlling the wolves. "Kill him," said the hybrid.

"No, wait! It wasn't my fault," he said panicking as he tried to concentrate. As they were about to attack Merlin a chocolate-skinned man came out from the kitchen with a sword, and swung his blade at them.

"Leave them alone!" the man shouted. Merlin looked around and realized there were some survivors. "I am Elyan, the one you seek. Now let the rest go."

The hybrid came forward and punched the chocolate-colored man, Elyan, in the stomach. He dropped his sword as he collapsed to the ground, unconscious. "No," said the leader. "Kill everyone."

Before Merlin could act, a terrible pain ripped through his body as a wolf shoved him down and landed on top of him, clawing at his skin – but it was the powerful bite that awoke him from his drunken state. He let out a cry in agony before an unknown force spurted forth from his body. The force was so _powerful_ that it killed five of the large wolves; the last one retreated to hide behind his master, whimpering, afraid of the warlock. Even the impassive hybrid showed fear in his eyes.

Merlin didn't understand what had just happened with his magic, but he acknowledged the fact that he was now pretty badly injured, and after just recovering from an intense fever, no less. His mind was telling him he had to escape and get help but the darkness slowly overtook him and he lost his consciousness.

The hybrid walked over and stood before the warlock as his last pet trailed behind him. "Finish him," he ordered and the wolf opened his mouth wide to finish Merlin off, but another force of magic pushed the wolf away. The wolf whimpered as he ran into hiding. The hybrid turned around to see who dared to attack his pet and quickly bowed in terror at the presence of his master.

"_Mordred._"

Mordred walked in, ignoring the hybrid and walking straight to Merlin. He squatted down beside him to take a closer look at Merlin's wound. The bite was deep – if it were an Alpha who bit him Merlin would definitely be turning into one of the hybrid's pet wolves right about now.

Merlin began to stir as he felt someone's fingers examining his injury. He couldn't really see who it was but he knew it wasn't the wolf or the hybrid. Before darkness threatened to take over again he heard, "Take him to the Castle of Fyrien in Essetir, along with the other prisoner." He tried to see who was giving the orders but he blacked out.

Mordred untied the warlock's blue neckerchief and threw it to the ground, before he stood back up and straightened his robe.

The hybrid looked at his master in puzzlement. "Why, Master?"

The Druid boy grinned. "Arthur is very fond of him for some reason. If he went missing I'm sure the prince would come running to rescue him," he replied and paused as he heard the movement of the hiding survivors. "Kill everyone else."

The hybrid nodded.

As Mordred walked out from the tavern, a trail of screams followed.

The screams woke Merlin up for a third time, but with the amount blood he had lost he didn't have enough energy to produce any magic. With his ounce last strength he managed to write something under the table with his blood before darkness claimed him again.

* * *

When Gaius returned from his routine of checking his patients at their homes he came back to his clinic to find Hanthur sitting in the heart of the room, reading a book about magic. "I thought Merlin was taking you out tonight for a celebration?"

Hanthur put the book down and looked at his surrogate grandfather rather guiltily. "We got into an argument."

Gaius raised an eyebrow to the ceiling. "About what?"

He sighed. "Arthur," he answered.

"Hanthur, I told you not to-"

He shook his head. "No, no, I didn't do anything. Merlin was trying to get Arthur jealous by using me and when I confronted him to convince him that he was in love with Arthur…he just got mad," he answered defensively and earned an apologetic expression from the physician. "Well, Evelyn has agreed to meet us here in a few days," he said, changing the subject.

"Is that why you are reading this?" he asked, pointing at the book the boy was holding.

Hanthur nodded. "I need to know more about mermaids," he answered, closing the book and handing it to the physician. "They're very dangerous, apparently."

Gaius grabbed the book and put it back to its safekeeping. "Yes. They were a vicious and stubborn kind of creature, but us humans are not very different from them either," he pointed out.

"Gaius," he started and received a hum from the physician. "Why can't a mermaid break promises? I've tried to find it in the book but it didn't tell me anything."

The physician sighed. "Well, if they break any promise they will lose their beauty."

The time-traveling prince's eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"

Gaius nodded. "And beauty is everything to a mermaid – besides their voice," he added and then turned to look at his surrogate grandson suspiciously. "What are you up to?"

Hanthur smiled innocently at the physician. "Nothing," he replied slyly and rose up from his chair. "I should go to sleep now. Tomorrow is my knight's coronation. I have to get up early," he said and Gaius nodded understandingly before he walked towards Merlin's room.

"Hanthur," Gaius said halting him from going any further. "I am proud that you are going to be a knight."

A smile grazed the young future prince's lips. "Does that mean you're going to be there tomorrow?"

"Of course. I wouldn't miss it," he promised.

"Thank you, Gaius," he said before he walked into his room. As he closed the door behind him, his smile faded. He wanted Merlin to be there at the coronation, too, but it was already very late and it seemed he wouldn't have a chance to make up with the warlock. He just hoped he would have another chance in the morning before the ceremony.

* * *

The morning was still dark when Gwen came out from her little house and locked the door, carrying her basket full of vegetables and fruits. As she turned to the nearly empty road, making her way to the castle, a cloaked man suddenly appeared in front of her and stopped her on her path. "Are you Guinevere?"

She looked at the unknown stranger nervously. "Yes, and who are you?"

"I will need you to come with me," he said and grabbed her arm unexpectedly.

She gasped at the surprise encounter and hit the man with her basket. As she tried to run, the man grabbed hold of her arm again and pulled her back. She tried to scream but he covered her mouth with a hand. He carried her to a dark alley and pushed her forcefully to the wall. She thought this was her best chance to run away again, but he caught up with her in no time and pulled her back. "Let me go!" she screamed as she was being lifted onto his shoulder and brought back to the dark alley. This time he held her arm firmer. "Who are you? What do you want?" she cried, obviously scared of the outcome.

"Don't be afraid, Gwen," said the man. "I am a friend of Elyan." She stopped her struggle at the mentioning of her brother's name, but the cloaked man took out a knife and she, once again, feared for her life. "My name is Solomon Campbell. Your brother was seeking help."

She looked confused, still eyeing at the knife he was carrying. "What? Why?"

"Because he received…this…" He took out a scroll box and handed to her. "Take it to Uther. Tell him to keep it safe." She slowly took it from him before he groaned and collapsed to his knees in front of her. She finally noticed there was bleeding from his ribs.

"You're hurt," she said, feeling rather guilty for trying to fight the injured man but she couldn't help it when she felt threatened. She knelt down beside him and tried to look at the injury but he stopped her by grabbing her hands.

"It's no use," he said, gasping for air. "I was grazed by the Alpha werewolf." He placed the knife to his heart.

"No, _no_, what are you doing? Don't kill yourself just because you're injured. I'm pretty sure Gaius can cure you," she said, panicking and trying to take the knife from the man but he pushed her away.

"Tell Uther… Ugh… _Long live the king_." She screamed for him to stop but he stabbed himself deep enough until his very life seemed to seep from his fresh chest wound.

Her scream awoke some villagers nearby and they alarmed the knights who were on duty.

* * *

The prince was not amused when he woke up to be served by the humorless servant, George, instead of Merlin. He came to acknowledge that Merlin was probably giving him this slow torment because Arthur wouldn't admit what had happened between them. As soon as he was dressed he stormed to the clinic to find his manservant. "_Mer_lin!" he screamed as he kicked the clinic door open, but he found only the physician and his grandson having breakfast, who were both now obviously startled by his intrusion. "Where is Merlin?" he demanded.

"I thought he was with you," said Gaius.

Arthur's eyes narrowed to the younger boy in the room. "No, he was with _him_ all day and apparently all_ night_!" he shouted, trying not to sound too jealous, but failing miserably.

Gaius gave the prince a questioning look. "Merlin and Hanthur share a room, of course they are together all day and night," he pointed out.

The time-traveling prince just gave his father a quite disturbed look as he noticed the prince was having the idea that _Hanthur_ was having sexual intercourse with _Merlin_. Hanthur sighed in annoyance as he put his bread down and cleared his throat. "I haven't seen him."

"Don't lie to me, _boy_!" Arthur shouted accusingly.

"I am _not_ lying! I was here the whole time yesterday! Ask Gaius," he shouted back defensively.

Both of them turned to the old physician for confirmation. "I am sorry, Arthur, but Merlin didn't return last night and Hanthur _was_ here with me."

Before Arthur could accuse the both of them of lying to him, Sir Leon ran in. The knight looked as though he had seen a ghost. "Sire, your presence has been requested in the court room. It's urgent," he said intensely. Arthur turned to leave when Leon added, "Gaius, your presence has also been requested."

After he heard Gwen's explanation of her encounter, Arthur wanted nothing more but to comfort the crying Gwen but he couldn't when the King was there along with other important lords of the court. A dead tavern boy named Solomon Campbell was lying on a rectangle table while Gaius studied his wound.

"My lord, I'm sorry," she said in a trembling voice, tears still flowing down from her eyes like waterfalls, making Arthur's heart ache painfully. He really wanted to hold her so much right now.

"There is nothing you should be sorry about," Uther said assuredly and kindly to the shaking girl. "It is not your fault."

She nodded before showing them the scroll box. "Solomon Campbell told me to give you this before he…he killed himself. It is what my brother and he risked their lives for." She handed it to Uther, who took it gracefully from her.

"Thank you. You have had a hard day. Take the rest of the day off," Uther said sincerely.

She nodded and glanced to Arthur. They shared an understanding moment before another maid came and took her away.

Uther opened the scroll box, handed it to the nearest servant after he took out the scroll, and untied the red ribbons around it. As he opened it he gasped and rerolled it back up. Arthur and Gaius noticed his startled reaction and looked at their king curiously.

"It is as he said: a wolf's graze," said the physician, turning the audience's attention away from Uther and back to him. "If he didn't kill himself he would have turned into a werewolf during the full moon – which is going to be tonight. When one turns they cannot be killed by any mortal weapon – only by silver, if not magic."

Uther nodded understandingly. "He did the right thing. He died honorably," he said regretfully as he turned to one of the servants. "Inform the undertakers. Tell them to prepare a proper burial for him." The servant nodded with a bow and left the room. Uther turned to Arthur, Leon, and Sir Knight Miles, also gesturing to Gaius to join them. His eyes went directly to Miles and whispered so only they could hear. "What did you find at the Tavern in the village of Elisedd?"

Miles gulped before answering, "Werewolf remains… as well as human."

Uther closed his eyes in distress and turned to Arthur. "Take some of your men and investigate."

Arthur nodded but took a glance at the scroll before he left.

"You are all dismissed," ordered Uther and all the lords started to leave one by one. When Gaius was about to leave Uther called him back. "Yes, my lord," said the physician.

"Whomever is after this map is looking for magic within the castle," said the king as he unrolled the scroll again and showed it to the physician.

Gaius gasped. "This is the map to Cornelius Sigan's tomb."

Uther nodded. "I think someone wants to revive him."

* * *

The meeting in the courtroom didn't even last fifteen minutes before Arthur strolled out from there and towards the stables with over fifteen knights following behind him. Hanthur was waiting by the door for Gaius, knowing Arthur would not explain anything to him. As soon as the physician came out he utterly asked, "What happened?"

"Hanthur, during your time…have you ever experienced an encounter with werewolves?" Gaius asked as they walked back to the clinic.

Hanthur stopped walking all of a sudden, giving Gaius an incredulous look, and forcing the old man to stop alongside him. "_Werewolves_?"

"Yes, werewolves," the physician reconfirmed.

"Yes… Morgana imprisoned them and kept them as pets since they were instinctively good with tracking. The last time I encountered them was…" His eyes became distant with painful memories. "Sir Elyan's last stand," he finished reluctantly.

Gaius nodded empathetically and didn't push for more grievous information from the boy. He continued his walk to the clinic. "Werewolves were last seen twenty-three years ago during the great purge in the northern kingdom. We didn't know there were any survivors."

"Wait," Hanthur halted their walk again. "There was a werewolf attack?"

"I'm afraid so."

"Where?"

"A tavern outside the citadel."

Fear suddenly flooded Hanthur's body. "Merlin," he whispered.

Gaius shook his head. "Don't jump to conclusions, Hanthur. Why would Merlin be going to a tavern outside of the citadel?"

"I don't know but I just have this bad feeling. I have to go check it out," he said and ran off despite Gaius's calling out to him.

* * *

Arthur and his knights could hear the haunting, mourning cries while the smell of blood and death in the air miles away attacked their nostrils before they arrived. It was the only tavern in the village since the population was rather small; the tavern was run by the village leader name Joseph Campbell and his two daughters, Aria and Caelian and their son, Solomon. Judging by the many people that mourned over their deaths proved that he was a well-respected man. As Arthur approached the villagers made a path for him to enter. His eyes widened in shock at what he witnessed next: human limbs and guts were everywhere…and their blood was either smeared or splashed across the floors and walls. There were five overly large wolf bodies lying among them, the cause of death unspecified. Some of the knights were still new to these kinds of death and began to vomit at the sight.

The prince squatted down and checked the bodies of the wolves. There was no sign of weaponry being used to kill these creatures. It looked like their spinal cord was shattered from within. Arthur's never seen anything like this before. He turned to Leon. "This doesn't make any sense. If werewolves were attacking last night, then why are there five of them _dead_? And why didn't they turn back to humans?"

"I don't understand it either, sire, but the way they were killed…it seems to be magic," Leon stated.

Arthur nodded, agreeing. "But did this sorcerer come to help or was he actually the one who brought them here?" He paused and studied the crime scene again. Then he saw footprints walking away from the tavern and into the woods. "Or maybe he is the one who they're after and these civilians were just in the way." Both he and Leon shared questioning looks. Something other than this horrific attack took place here, but the main mystery remained: _who is this sorcerer_, and _why was he here in the tavern_?

"Take one of the werewolf bodies back to Camelot for Gaius to study. I will stay here," Arthur ordered. "And send word for the undertakers."

"Yes, sire," said the blond knight who was still confounded by the horrific state of the tavern.

It took more then seven men to carry one of the dead wolves onto a cart to be delivered to Gaius. Two newer knights left with Leon back to Camelot while the rest stayed with Arthur to further examine the place until the undertakers arrived.

"What a horrid sight," murmured one of the three undertakers as they came to take the knights' place to the collect the many thrown about body parts, planning on reconnecting them later. "I have never seen such horrid sight for thirty years. Hmph."

Arthur wanted to say something comforting to his knights and the villagers but the sight also overwhelmed him as much as them. He took a deep breath and regretted doing so instantly when the sickening odor overflowed his nose. He scowled and was about to walk out when he saw a blue neckerchief lying on the floor. He slowly walked over to it and squat down to pick it up. He smelled it and gasped as he noticed it had the same earthy scent as Merlin. He wouldn't mistake Merlin's scent with anyone's. Quickly, he jolted up and around the bar to examine the guest lists that taverns and inns usually possess to keep track of their customers. He held his breath as his eyes followed down the list, hoping not to find his Merlin's name on it. His heart nearly stopped as his eyes landed on Merlin's name.

"Arthur!"

He heard his name was called and Hanthur appeared by the door, panting and huffing for air. _Did he run all the way over_? Arthur noticed the soon-to-be-knight's boyish face turned pale due to shock of the massacre, but it quickly disappeared unlike the other new knights, which Arthur thought was a bit odd. Then he remembered the boy's uncles were gruesomely killed, so this was probably not his first time encountering death.

"Merlin- Is Merlin-" Hanthur stopped his stammering as he saw the prince was holding the blue neckerchief. He closed his eyes, mortified, as his heart grew heavy. "No," he whispered in disbelief, shaking his head. "Don't tell me…" His eyes looked around the tavern frantically. "Where is he?" He started running around the tavern, searching through the human limbs for any evidence of the warlock.

"Hanthur, calm down," Arthur said as he round the bar to get to the boy. He grabbed Hanthur's shoulder to stop his movement but the boy slapped his hand away. "_Hey_!" he shouted but stopped as he realized that the boy was crying. He didn't know Hanthur loved Merlin this much. "He… We won't know until the undertakers put the bodies together first."

Hanthur's eyes furrowed angrily. "This is all _your_ fault!"

Arthur looked astonished at the boy's accusation. "_Excuse me_?"

Hanthur stopped as he realized what he was about to blurt out. Both Arthur and Merlin didn't know that he knew about their sexual encounter during the hunt. If he spilled out any more information Arthur would be very furious with Merlin. He averted his eyes away from the prince. "You should have taken better care of him."

Arthur scoffed. "He was supposed to be with _you_ yesterday. How is that my fault?"

"We got into an argument so we weren't together yesterday."

This time it was Arthur who furrowed his eyes. "Then don't blame _me_ for his runaway after your lovers' quarrel," he shouted, sounding more envious than angry.

"We are _not_ lovers," Hanthur whispered heatedly.

"What?"

Hanthur's eyes met with the prince's. "Merlin and I are not lovers."

"Then explain to me what you two were arguing about."

"We are friends. Friends and family argue all the time. Just because we argue doesn't make us lovers!" Hanthur spat angrily, rolling his eyes.

Both of them went silent for a long minute.

"How long do the undertakers usually take to put them back together?" Hanthur asked.

Arthur shrugged. "Depends on how many dead bodies there are," he said aguishly. "Three days, at most."

Hanthur felt utterly defeated by the information and kicked the nearest table over forcefully. The crash startled everyone in the room; they glared at Hanthur angrily for the disturbance. As the boy was apologizing to them Arthur noticed Merlin's unreadable scribbled handwriting underneath the table. It's a good thing Arthur's known Merlin long enough to be able to read it. "Essetir? Fyrien?" Arthur quickly knew where Merlin was. "We have to return to Camelot," he said urgently and walked out.

"What? What about Merlin?" Hanthur shouted, following the prince out.

Arthur mounted onto his horse. "Merlin is alive."

"How do you know?"

"Come on! Get on!" He reached out a hand to Hanthur and he grabbed it, mounting the horse. "Merlin may be alive but he was injured." Arthur pulled on the reins and they soon galloped toward Camelot. "Merlin wrote Essetir and Fyrien underneath the table. His captor must be taking him to the castle Fyrien. Judging by the blood he used to write under the table, he must have received a severe injury," he shouted his explanation in order for Hanthur to hear him.

"That doesn't make any sense. Why would they take Merlin?" the boy shouted back.

Arthur didn't understand it either. Merlin was a servant and nothing more, so why did they take _him_? Was it to get information on Arthur? Then a new fear arose, causing the back of the prince's head to swirl around in agony. He knew Merlin's loyalty well and he knew his manservant was trustworthy to keep any of Arthur's secrets. He was just afraid of the consequences that could happen to Merlin when the abductors wouldn't get the information they needed. At the thought of Merlin being tortured, his heart clenched painfully with worry. "I don't know," he answered honestly. "But when we get to the castle, we can't inform my father about the rescue mission."

"Why not?"

"Because he would never allow us to risk our lives for a mere servant."

"Then what excuse are we going to use?"

Arthur smiled at the boy's lack of concern about lying to the king. "He will want us to track down the werewolves. When we are in the forest, you and I will separate ourselves from the group and we will go to Essetir," Arthur said. "Let's just hope Merlin will stay alive until then."

Hanthur didn't like the idea of waiting to rescue Merlin but he knew fighting a group of werewolves would be unwise. "We need to take Sir Leon and his servant with us."

"_What_? Why would we want to involve more people?"

"I read from Gaius' books. Werewolves are very strong. If it is just you and I we won't be able to fight them off. With at least another person we will be more efficient."

The prince's brows furrowed in confusion. "But why a servant?"

"Well, we need someone to cook for us," he added and Arthur nodded in understanding. Hanthur knew exactly which servant to ask.

* * *

Merlin felt nothing but a throbbing and endless pain with every move he'd make. His head was pounding excruciatingly against his skull and his body was shivering from the cold air, but his skin felt as hot as fire. It was painful just to open his eyes but he needed to know where he was. As he opened his eyes he heard a child's voice calling out to someone. "Hey, _hey_! He is awake!" His vision was still blurry and he considered this as the worst hangover he's ever had.

Then he felt someone kneel down beside him. "Hey, Merlin – it's me. Do you recognize me?" The new man's voice sounded very familiar, but he couldn't guess who it was until his vision finally cleared up.

"Lancelot," he murmured in relief.

The handsome lad grinned abundantly with relief as he nodded. "Yes, it's Lancelot."

"Where…*cough* Where are we?" Merlin managed to ask coarsely, just now realizing how dry his mouth was as he studied the place. It was obviously a prison with a bunch of hay and dirty blankets. An unfamiliar child's face appeared in front of him, surprising him with a bowl of water. "Who…are…*cough*…"

"I'm Anastasia," chirped the child and she handed the water to Lancelot. He thanked the child and helped Merlin drink from the bowl. As she came back for the bowl Merlin's eyes widened as he realized her upper half was human but her lower half from hip down…from hip down was part horse.

"You're a…a centaur."

Anastasia grinned cheerfully and nodded.

Merlin looked to Lancelot questioningly. "How did you guys…turn up here?" he asked.

"Both of us," Lancelot looked to the centaur, "were captured here to be fed to the wolves, but apparently you saved our lives by killing most of them."

Merlin nodded in acknowledgment before he started to cough uncontrollably. As he touched his aching shoulder he felt the wound and looked to Lancelot panicking. He knew what happened when werewolves bite people: they get turned into one. But, Anastasia came forward and assuredly said: "You were bitten by a Beta wolf, so you are not going to turn into a werewolf." She added, "Also, just in case you were wondering about your friend, Elyan, he was fine until they took him away."

It took the young warlock a while to know whom the child centaur was referring to…the chocolate-colored man that was also taken as a prisoner. "He…is not…my friend," he said tiredly. "I don't know who he is…*cough*… Or why I'm here…"

"Don't worry too much. Rest for now," Lancelot said and put more of the cleanest blanket he could find on top of his friend. "When you are well enough, I will break us out of here," he promised.

Merlin nodded and closed his eyes to sleep, hoping that Arthur or someone would see what he wrote under the table, and come to their rescue.

* * *

Elyan was forced to kneel down as soon as he and Cenred's soldiers reached their destination. He knew he was inside a castle but he wasn't sure where the castle was located. The bricks on the wall looked weary, which told him the castle was an old one. There weren't many candles lit but there were enough to see the shadows of many different presences. His arms and legs were chained with cuffs and there were too many soldiers guarding the entrance, making it impossible for him to escape.

Cenred entered with a beautiful blond woman alongside him. The Essetir prince went to sit on the throne by a wall while the blond woman walked in circles around the prisoner. "So…this is the man who stole the map," the woman said as her fingers caressed his dark jawline. "Tell me, young man – why are you so eager to help Camelot? Uther practically killed your father."

Elyan remained as impassive as he had been. "I didn't steal the map. The knight was dying when I found him. And for your information, my father was a traitor – he died for helping a sorcerer."

She smirked. "So you plan to regain your family's dignity by helping Uther?"

He didn't answer but she knew it was the right guess. "So…" she began, pausing her words and body right in front of the dark-skinned man, giving him a smug look. "Where is it now?"

"I will never tell you," he snarled.

"Oh? I was hoping you'd say that," she said, and he saw a knight come in with a little black chest. She opened it and gently grabbed a hold of a small black snake that now rested on the flats of her palms. "This is a Nathair," she said in a seductive voice, kissing the snake's head. "You see – she is harmless most of the time, but when it comes to excavating information…she can be _very_ aggressive."

Elyan's eyes widened in fear as she stalked closer to him; he would still not give them the information. The blond woman smiled wickedly and let the snake strike.

* * *

**A/N: REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! XD AND HAPPY THANKSGIVING! AND WHILE WAITING FOR ME TO UPDATE FOR THIS STORY, YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT MY OTHER STORIES! :D **


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Merlin (sadly).

**Rated:** M, for good reason...Mpreg :D

******Special Thanks to: **ScheiGuy for helping me with the editing :D

**A/N:** All right. I would like to say that **I won't be able to post a new chapter for the next 3 weeks! It's exam week in two weeks and I need to concentrate on finishing my projects and study! I'm giving everyone a head up so you guys would not wonder why I didn't update but please still leave some reviews :D **

* * *

Chapter 9

Gaius came back into his clinic after he was forced to examine the werewolf in the great hall; due to the creature's large size it was impossible to get its limp body into Gaius' workspace. He was surprised to find a platinum blond-haired girl with green cat-eyes sitting in one of the chairs reading the magic book that was _supposed_ to be hidden behind a brick by the window. She didn't seem to hear him come in until he closed the door. "Who the devil are _you_?" he demanded.

She stood up with a curtsy and smiled brightly at him. "You must be Gaius, the court physician. Uncle Alton speaks fondly of you," she said, gracefully. "I'm Evelyn Greene. Hanthur told me to come in to properly introduce myself to you and Merlin."

He studied her closely as she did the same to him. She had a petit body with long, beautiful blond hair, a small face, slim lips, and her catchy eyes were gorgeously large. She looked harmless but he had to be cautious since she was still a witch. "But he told me we wouldn't be expecting you for a few days."

She nodded. "Yes, that was what we had agreed upon, but I don't want to waste any more time than I have to in that mansion with Leon's_ horrid_ mother," she said and turned around as her eyes flashed gold. Her skin became very sensitive to the aura around the physician. There was a comforting feeling about Gaius. She sensed she'd be able to trust him, and he'd be loyal if she decided to tell him a secret.

Gaius gave her a dubious stare. "Is what you're after truly just Leon's affection? And nothing more?"

She smirked. "If you're talking about Uther, there is no doubt that I do hate him, but I am pretty sure he has his reasons to hate our kind, too. Besides: I have no interest in Camelot whatsoever," she said humbly and then turned to the book with a disapproving look. "Who wrote this book?"

Gaius walked over and took it from her hands. "How did you know where I hid this?" he demanded and put it back where it belonged.

She took a seat again. She didn't know how many times she would have to tell people about her kind, but it seemed she would have to do it a couple more. "I'm one-third eel. We are sensitive to basically almost everything. I mean, I know where all the poison was hidden in this clinic; I can sense beyond this room… I can sense who has been kept in the prison underneath this very castle."

Both of them gave each other a stern stare.

"Prove to me that you are a real eel-mermaid."

She rolled her eyes in annoyance and went over to a corner, where there was a bucket of water. She poured it onto her legs, and as the water came into contact with her bare skin the flesh shimmered, transforming into a large grayish-green eel tail. Not only had her bottom changed but also her hair changed into a pitch-black color; her emerald eyes had changed into a shade of bright red. Gray slimy fins grew on both of her elbows and went down her spine. Four gills slit open on each side of her neck. She smiled satisfyingly at the physician's appalled face. "Now do you believe me?"

"Why did you agree to help Hanthur?"

Her lips quirked up into an innocent smile – she was giving the physician an even look. "Hanthur and I have reached an agreement," she replied.

"Explain yourself."

"Where should I start?"

"You can start with Priestess Lilith and Sir Knight Kay from five hundred years ago."

Evelyn wondered how the old physician knew about her parents. She acknowledged that Hanthur probably took note when Taliesin mentioned it during their meeting in the forest, but beside her mother and father there were plenty of other priestess named Lilith and knights named Kay.

"Don't even try and lie to me. I can tell when someone is lying and when someone is telling the truth."

She smirked. "That makes two of us, then," she said as she slithered to find a cool, comfortable place to curl up her tails like a snake near the fireplace as she let it dry. "I can't lie even if I wanted to since I did promise Hanthur to explain things to you and the servant boy."

"Then tell me about your parents."

She sighed before she started. "I am the daughter of Priestess Lilith and Sir Knight Kay from five hundred years ago. My mother and I were under an enchantment that was more like a curse: it is known as the Anextiomarus Bliss." Gaius gaped at the mention of the ancient spell. He thought it was only a myth since the only ones who could incarnate it were the sea-people who were, supposedly, no longer in existence. "The enchantment was a blessing by the god of the sun for immortality, and only true love's kiss can break it in order to become mortal once more."

Gaius leaned forward, studying her carefully. "If you are really Sir Knight Kay's daughter…then you are, in fact, the Fisher King's granddaughter," he stated and she nodded agreeably. "Hanthur did mention that Morgana used an ancient book of the old religion to destroy Albion, as well as the whole world in the future. Do you have any idea of the book he is talking about?"

She squinted her eyes quizzically at the old physician's question. _How does Hanthur know anything about the future_? _Could it be that Hanthur is a seer_? _But Hanthur doesn't have magic - how could he have seen the future without magic_? Then she remembered Taliesin mention something about Hanthur being a future prince in the woods but she'd never thought twice about it. Her eyes widened, finally understanding everything. _How could I have missed it_? She was so absorbed in her own little fantasy that she didn't even bother to put together what was going on right in front of her. "Hanthur is from the future?"

Gaius gaped. "You didn't know?"

She felt like an idiot for not acknowledging it but it's not totally her fault. There was something mysterious about the boy when she couldn't use her magic on him. "No," she said. "But since he is helping Arthur, that means…" Her eyes became even wider, if that was possible, as she finally comprehended. Arthur and Hanthur looked_ identical_ but they were not brothers. A prince from the future that looked a lot like Arthur could only mean…"Prince Arthur is Hanthur's father?"

Gaius didn't answer but his stoic expression was enough to tell her that what she has guessed was true. Then she thought back to Hanthur's strange obsession with Merlin and his determination to get to Arthur and Merlin. She could see Hanthur wanted affection from Merlin but not the lover's kind. It was more like…a child wanting attention from his mother. "And Merlin is his mother." She slumped down to her bottom. "It all makes sense. I mean, his _scent _– did you notice he had this strange scent with him?" she asked and he shook his head. "The scent was as if he was not alive, but not dead either. I couldn't put my finger on it but it smelled almost like..." She trailed off as another question came to her mind: _how could Arthur and Merlin have Hanthur_? _Even though Merlin has great magic, Arthur is still human. _

"What are you-"

"Putting the pieces together," she interrupted and the physician supposed Hanthur might have told her _something._ Then she jolted up, as she believed she had found the right theory. "Uther used the _Lapse Almaarea_ spell on his queen, didn't he?"

The question horrified the physician. Uther and he were the only persons who knew the spell that Nimueh casted on Ygraine in order to conceive a son for Uther. "How did you know that?"

Evelyn threw back her head with a laugh in disbelief. "Now it makes sense! So _that_ is why Arthur and Merlin can conceive Hanthur," she muttered to herself. "But no human has used _Lapse Almaarea_ for hundreds of years. Even the world of magic has forbid the use of similar spells because it is too risky."

Gaius moved forward. "How did you know about the _Lapse Almaarea_?" He was trying to understand how Evelyn figured it out.

She smirked. "The _Lapse Almaarea_ wasn't really a secret in the magic world," she said and she could tell he didn't seem to know the history of the magic. She sighed. "There wasn't really a name for the first _Lapse Almaarea, _since the creator didn't live long enough to give it a name. Madam Caillech, an Avian, created it when she could not bear a human child for her human lover. She used her magic to incant the spell without knowing the price of the outcome. A child was growing inside her but in order to create a life, another life must be taken. Little did she know that the life the child would absorb was her own. She died shortly after giving birth to the child.

"After many years, several witches and warlocks developed similar forbidden magic spells, like the one Madam Caillech created, but only the humans used the _Lapse Almaarea_. Humans don't typically possess magic, so in order to succeed in this spell they would need the help of a person with magic: a powerful sorcerer or sorceress. They would have to put a piece of their magic inside the conceiver and that magic would help develop a child. But, the conceiver will still pay the same price: her life. The only difference is that those pieces of that magic, which helped Queen Ygraine conceive Arthur, still live inside him and it will live within him for the rest of his life. And, with that very magic, Arthur and Merlin can give birth to Hanthur with no risk." She finally breathed after the long explanation and she was very happy to put it all together but then the truth hit her hard. "Uther outlawed magic because of Queen Ygraine's death."

Gaius gulped guiltily. "Uther had used many different spells to impregnate his queen but none had prevailed. He then grew desperate and resorted to the _Lapse Almaarea_ spell."

Her eyes narrowed furiously. "And he blames _us_?"

"Nimeuh never did explain the procedure-"

"And her mistake alone results in the doom of the rest of us?"

Gaius opened his mouth to say something but closed it when he knew all too well that he couldn't say anything to defend his king. She would have stormed out if it weren't for her still visible eel tail. "I know what Uther did was wrong, but you should not blame the prince. He does not know."

"And why should I believe that Arthur won't be the same as his father?"

"As you already know Hanthur is from the future and he knows Arthur's reign is not like Uther's."

"How would I know he is telling the truth? He might as well be a liar like his grandfather! I cannot rest the fate of the future on that!"

"And you can depend upon Morgana for your future?"

Evelyn blinked a few times in confusion. "Who?"

Gaius explained the reason for Hanthur traveling back to the past: attempting to stop the war that will end King Arthur's reign and prevent the wrath of Queen Morgana. After he finished, she took a seat silently with her brows furrowed in disbelief. "Evelyn-"

"So this book that you're telling me about will help her destroy not only the human race but the magical one, too?" she asked in a very monotone voice.

Gaius nodded and she could sense he was not lying to her. She sighed heavily and brought up a hand to cover her face in despair. After a moment of silence she stood up. "I'm not going to be involved in this."

"What? But-"

The door opened and Hanthur walked in. Though she may have looked slightly different he could still tell who she was, but what surprised him most was her gray tail, which was turning pale now, as it slowly formed back into a pair of bare legs. "Evelyn," he said in a confusing tone.

* * *

_Half an hour earlier…_

Both the current prince and future prince jumped off the horse as soon as they had reached the front gate. They didn't waste any time waiting for a servant to get the horse and rushed in. The king was in the main hall with a couple of his councilors, including Gaius and Leon. The werewolf that was brought back from the tavern was on the large table in the middle of the hall. "Ah, Arthur," said Uther wryly. Uther waved a hand to dismiss his councilors, including Gaius as he saw his son approach. Hanthur and the physician exchanged a curious look before he departed. Sir Leon stayed behind with the king. "Maybe you could give us a bit of good news."

Arthur shook his head. "There are prints of wolves leading out from the tavern. There are still more of these creatures out there," he answered regrettably. "We will need to track them down and bring them to justice for murder. I would like to request your permission to lead this mission."

Uther rubbed his forehead in frustration. He had planned Morgana's safe return banquet for days now and it seemed he would have to cancel it until the werewolves were vanquished. He nodded. "No, we will not show mercy to these vile creatures. Take as many men as you need and slaughter them on the spot like they did to many of our kind," he ordered viciously.

Hanthur's eyes narrowed at his grandfather's barbaric decision but he was even more shocked when his father answered, "Yes, sire." With a respectful bow he left the room with Hanthur trailing behind him.

"Are you seriously going to _slaughter_ them?" the younger man asked curiously when they were away from curious ears.

"Yes, Hanthur. They have killed many of our kind. We shouldn't let them live for their crimes," the prince answered but Hanthur halted him from going any further.

"Where is the justice in that? I'm pretty sure the king has slaughtered many of their kind before. If they killed our kind to get revenge isn't that predictable?" he pointed out.

Arthur's eyes furrowed in anger. "Excuse me? Are you questioning the king's judgment?" he asked sternly with his blue eyes flashing furiously.

Hanthur didn't move from his ground and glared back at his father evenly. He worked his jaw as he said, "No, sire."

"Then I suggest you mind your tongue, boy. Even if you are the grandson of the court physician you are still not greater than the king, and you never will be," the prince said warningly and turned his back on Hanthur. "Now, go get ready. We better hurry and rescue Merlin before it's too late." Then he strolled away.

Hanthur heaved a sigh heavily as his fists clenched up at his sides angrily. He took a few deep breaths before he went towards the clinic to pack. As he opened the door he wasn't expecting to see a large eel-tailed mermaid nearby the chimney. Though she may have looked slightly different he could still tell who she was, but what surprised him most was her gray tail, which was turning pale now, as it slowly formed back into a pair of bare legs. "Evelyn," he said in a confusing tone. "What are you doing here?" He closed the door behind him and locked it before anyone could enter and see her tail. Before he could ask more questions a knock was heard on the door.

"Gaius, are you in there?" It was Leon's voice and all three of them froze in their places.

"Just a minute!" Gaius shouted and turned to the mermaid. "Go to Merlin's room." He pointed up the little staircase that went up to a door where Merlin's room was.

Evelyn didn't usually take orders but she didn't want Leon to see her in her fish form so she slithered up and into the room obediently. As Hanthur walked pass the physician to Merlin's room he gave his fake grandfather a questioning look, but it seemed that this was not the best time to ask questions. Gaius went to unlock the door and let the blond knight in. "Leon, what can I do for you?"

Hanthur turned to Evelyn. "What are you doing here? I thought you wouldn't be coming here for a few days," he whispered to her.

"I…I really wanted to see Leon," she whispered as they looked at the knight and physician through the small holes in the door.

Hanthur shook his head, frustrated at the turnout but then he realized it could be a good thing she was here. He was planning to bring her along with the rescue mission anyways – as "the servant." He was just a little upset that she was here without consulting with him first. No matter what she said about her obsession with Leon, she was still a threat to anyone that he loved.

Now all he needed to do was get Leon and Evelyn to meet, then she wouldn't be able to escape her promise to him. He looked down to her tail – it had already turned back to her legs now, and her dark hair turned back to blond. "Do you want to meet Leon?"

She turned to him sharply. "_What_?"

"Prince Arthur wants to get information from you on how to kill a werewolf," Leon said rather urgently.

"Well, to kill a werewolf he will need an instrument of silver, and he will _always_ have to strike the heart."

"Silver?"

The physician nodded. "The other choice would be magic but it has obviously canceled itself out."

The blond nodded, acknowledging the truth behind that. "I will inform Prince Arthur. Thank you for your time," he said and turned around, ready to leave when Merlin's door swung open. He saw Hanthur walking out from his room with a beautiful and enchanting blond girl by his side. "Hanthur, you're here."

Hanthur smiled innocently and said, "Yes, I was here."

Leon chuckled. "I thought you would be at the stables by now. The other three new knight-candidates were already preparing their horses," he said and then he finally took full notice of the small cat-eyed girl standing next to Hanthur. "And who might this be?" he said hypnotized by her true beauty.

She blushed furiously as she felt his eyes beaming on her. Meanwhile, Hanthur felt as if he were being thrown out the window due to this strong, love atmosphere emanating from his two friends. "This is Evelyn Greene," he said, trying not to interrupt their cosmic moment. "She is Gaius' niece."

Both Gaius and Evelyn looked to him in disbelief at his lie.

"Boy oh _boy_, Gaius, you just keep having family members pop in on you, don't you?" Leon said amusingly.

Gaius gave Hanthur a disapproving glare before he gave a nod to the blond knight. "She is the daughter of an old friend of mine. She came to visit without notice so I haven't informed anyone just yet," he replied.

Hanthur gave her a little shove forward, which earned an evil glare from the mermaid before she turned to Leon.

"Evelyn," her name sounded _so_ good on his lips as he took her hand in his and kissed it. "I am Sir Knight Leon."

She gaped stupidly at his affections. "It is a pleasure to meet you, sir knight." That was what she meant to say, but what really came out wasn't something totally audible, but more like mumbling. Hanthur choked back a laugh when Leon gave her a blinking look. "I-I mean..."

Hanthur pulled Evelyn away from the knight and smiled apologetically at him. "I apologize for her unusual behavior. I think she meant it's a pleasure to meet you. She is just nervous because she's never really been to a city as big as Camelot before," he explained and she lowered her gaze shyly with a small smile.

Leon grinned. "Well, would you like a tour, then?" he asked with a bow and offered to take her hand again.

She stepped forward timidly and took his hand. "That would be lovely."

Gaius stepped towards the knight. "Don't you have a mission, Sir Leon?" he reminded him.

Leon blinked and laughed a little at himself. "Oh yes, thank you for the reminder, Gaius," he said before turning back to the beautiful girl in front of him with an apologetic look.

She smiled shyly. "I will surely hold you to that, sir knight."

He kissed her hand again. "Then I should return to escort you, my lady," he said, but before he turned to leave he winked at Hanthur as a thank you for the introduction.

When the knight was out of the room Gaius turned back to the mermaid. "Now Evelyn, we are not done talking."

Hanthur gave both of them a suspicious look. "What have you guys been talking about?" he asked, crossing his arms.

"I'm not siding with Arthur," Evelyn said straight out which made Hanthur confused. "I know what Uther did and I don't trust Arthur's judgment."

Hanthur glared at Gaius. Judging the physician's guilty expression he knew she now knew about Ygraine. "My father is not the same person as my grandfather."

"How do you know that? Stories from your mother, who happens to be the servant boy, _Merlin_?" she snarled.

"_Hey_," he snapped, uncrossing his arm and pointing a finger at her angrily. "My father is an honorable man. He will right what he sees is wrong."

"Then why hasn't he? Huh? Anyone who was born with magic has been executed the second they were discovered, guilty or innocent. And what has _he_ done? He is sitting in this great palace, eating his riches away. Why hasn't he done anything to prevent it? And your mother, _Merlin_ – why hasn't he told Arthur about his magic? Why is he the prince's lowly servant? Why is he hiding? His magic is greater than mine, greater than _anyone_ I know. Even Taliesin's magic doesn't surpass his. So, tell me: what is the difference between Uther and Arthur?"

With each question that was thrown at him he grew more and more speechless. He never did wonder why it took his parents seven years from now to build Albion. All his mother had said was that as long as Uther lives Arthur couldn't really make the decision about who is to live or die – but how come Merlin never tried to help Arthur understand that magic is not evil? "He didn't know," he said, more like he thought out loud.

"What?"

Hanthur looked at Evelyn, evenly, preparing himself for his own statements. "The magical creatures were in hiding, while the ones who roamed free just wanted to kill Arthur. How could Merlin tell Arthur about his magic when all the witches, and warlocks, and any magical being has never used magic for good, but for bad in front of Arthur?"

"But-"

"When you were a child you listened to your parents to tell you what to believe, right?" he interrupted her, sternly. "I believe my mother's every word about my father. Just like Arthur to Uther. What about you?"

"_Yes_, but-"

"Then you can't blame Arthur for believing Uther's words! If you really want to change his mind, why can't you settle it like civil beings?"

"Uther hasn't settled this like a civil being! He slaughters our kind for his own mistakes! He kills our kind in front of Arthur as an example! How is being civil going to help change?"

"If to kill Uther would satisfy your sense of judgment then you are nothing but _exactly_ like him!"

"Then answer me this, young Pendragon: how is Arthur any different than his father?"

Hanthur came to realize he still didn't know anything about his father. He's spent almost two months in Camelot and he knew little to nothing, but that didn't stop him from believing in Arthur. "He has a sense of justice. He just hasn't come to trust his judgment yet. With the right people: my mother, Gaius-" He moved closer to her, never breaking eye contact with her. "_You_, and _me_. I believe my father will find himself to be a much better man than his father. He will see goodness in magic through you and my mother."

"And what if he doesn't?"

His eyes softened. "I don't believe he wouldn't. I trust him." He smiled confidently.

She gave him an unsure look. She tried to sense his emotions but she couldn't feel them. The same strange aura that surrounded him from before was blocking her from detecting it now. Quickly, she cupped his cheeks and with her green eyes flashing gold, an invisible force pushed her away…and she saw nothing.

As soon as Hanthur realized she was using magic he slapped her hands away. "What are you doing?"

Evelyn moved away from Hanthur, looking to Gaius to see if he saw what she felt, but judging by his expression he didn't. "I...I can't decide right now."

Hanthur's eyes furrowed. "Well, it doesn't matter what you choose. The promise is already made."

She gave him a confused glare. "_What_?"

"As long as I introduce you to Sir Leon, you will help me and Merlin without questioning," he reminded her.

She gave him a disbelieving look. "You _tricked_ me."

"It doesn't matter. Now, you are going to go pack up anything you need; you will dress in the same clothes that can transform into the boy you wore during the hunt, and meet me back at the stable in ten minutes."

She slowly walked to him and slapped him across the face before she strolled out the door. Gaius, who was silent the whole time, stepped up to the boy as he worked his jaw. Gaius stared at his fake grandson appalled. "You tricked her?"

"No, I just simply made her promise to help me and Merlin if I introduce her to Sir Leon."

"Hanthur," he said sternly and critically. "You cannot just wager with other people's lives like that – especially your friends."

The boy frowned. "Evelyn and I are _not_ friends. And, about Sir Leon, I promised I won't let anything happen to him. I just want to make sure Morgana doesn't get her hands on that book before we do."

"And tricking Evelyn will get you that book? I mean, we don't even know if she has the book. You can't play games like this, Hanthur. You have to let fate take control of its own course."

Hanthur grimaced. "And where did that fate lead my parents to? Fate led my parents to their death, led Albion to destruction, and left me with _no one_!" He choked at the last words as he realized how desperate he was to keep the people that were dear to him alive, even if he had to sacrifice other lives for theirs. He knew it was wrong of him to do – Gaius was right, but he couldn't bear to lose them again. "I won't let Morgana have that book. I will protect everyone. I will _not_ fail them again!" He snarled and left the room before Gaius could protest.

Gaius exhaled and sat down on a chair. He couldn't blame Hanthur for his behavior. The boy had been through so much and had seen more than most his age that even Gaius couldn't bring himself to remain infuriated by him. However, the path the future prince had hastily chosen is wrong. _I have to think of something to help him_. Aside from himself, the only other person who can get through to Hanthur is probably Merlin. Therefore, he has to speak to his surrogate son about Hanthur and try to prevent him from taking this path.

* * *

Merlin was forced awake as another body was thrown into the prison cell and the door closed soon after. Lancelot instantly came to his side, placed a hand on his shoulder, and assuredly said, "It's okay. It's okay," before he went to check on the stranger that was thrown in. Merlin sat up and realized that it was the chocolate-colored man, Elyan. He was alive but wasn't looking too good.

Anastasia went to his side and checked his pulse and forehead. "They used the Nathair: a snake created by dark magic. The high priestesses used them to excavate information rather forcefully and painfully," she explained and Merlin looked at her curiously._ How does she know all of that when she looks as if she's only six years old_?

"Is he going to be all right?" Merlin asked, trying not to move so much since his flesh wounds were still painfully aching with his every movement.

"Yes, but you better not move or you will re-open your wounds," said Anastasia and Merlin just realized the grazes and bites on his shoulder was sewn together. Merlin wondered where she got the needles and string. Then the movement of the child centaur's tail gave the answer away. "He has a fever," she said as she checked Elyan for further injuries. "The pain will fade with time. He just needs to rest."

Lancelot sighed in relief. "Aren't high priestesses supposed to be…_good_?" Lancelot asked as he shifted Elyan's body into a better sleeping position.

She shook her head. "Not after the great purge," she replied and looked to Merlin. "How are you feeling?"

The warlock smiled a little confidently. "Still painful but I'll survive."

She nodded and went to get some blankets for Elyan. Lancelot came and sat next to the warlock. "Are you all right?" he asked.

Merlin nodded. "How did you wind up in the same prison cell with a centaur?" he whispered curiously to his friend.

Lancelot smiled. "Well, after I was banished from Camelot I've been traveling around the five kingdoms. I met quite a lot interesting magical beings along the way: fairies, pixies, dwarves – so on and so forth."

Merlin gaped. "You did?"

He nodded. "They were in hiding, of course. The ones that I saw are the ones that I helped."

"You helped them?"

He nodded. "I mean. I saw that you are magic but you didn't use it to do bad things. You used it to help Arthur," he pointed out. "So I thought maybe not all of the magical creatures are as bad as Uther claims them to be."

Merlin smiled gratefully. "Thank you."

Lancelot shook his head. "No, thank you, Merlin for opening my eyes to something that has been blinded to me by an unjust king," he said and then he realized he hadn't really answered Merlin's question. "I was traveling to see your home village, Ealdor, when I ran into Anastasia." He nodded to the centaur. "She was running from the Essetir knights. I helped her escape, and we had for a week before we were captured."

"What do they want from her?" Merlin asked.

His dark-haired friend shrugged. "They haven't taken her out from the cell for any interrogation, or wolf chow, so I don't know," he answered honestly. "What about you? How did you end up here? It is not because of Arthur, is it?"

"I don't know why I'm here either," Merlin answered.

Lancelot nodded in acknowledgment. "Well, we better get you back to Arthur. You know how he can't survive without you," he said sarcastically and earned a sad laugh from the warlock.

Merlin was awake when he heard a chanting. He looked around him and saw Lancelot and Elyan were still asleep but the child centaur was bathing in the brilliant moonlight that was shining through the barred windows. He sat up and looked curiously at Anastasia, who had her eyes closed as she was chanting. Merlin felt the aura in the prison cell change as if the air was getting heavier.

"What are you doing?" Merlin demanded and she opened her eyes; he realized they had turned from their natural brown color to a bloody red color.

She smiled creepily at the warlock. "We meet at last, Emrys" she started as she rose up. Merlin realized that she was no longer a child centaur but a fully-grown one.

Merlin felt his life was threatened and raised a hand up in defense, halting her from coming any closer. "_Who are you_?"

"You don't need to be afraid of me, young warlock," she assured and did a curtsy bow. "I am a seer, the other half of Anastasia."

Merlin lowered his hand and gave her a confusing stare. "What?"

"I see you do not know a lot about your own kind," she said. "But we know a lot about you, Emrys. The druids talks about you: about the great things you will do for us." She slowly moved toward the warlock and knelt down before him with her horse legs as she took his hands. "But you have pretended for so long that you've started to lose faith in yourself."

"W-what are you talking about?" Merlin asked nervously. He hoped the centaur was not a mind-reader or she would know about him and Arthur. "I'm not losing faith."

She gave him a dubious look. "Stop lying to yourself, Emrys," she said sternly. "If it hurt you so much, why did you continue to stay with the prince?"

The warlock shifted his glance from the centaur to Lancelot suspiciously, who only returned a confusing look before he turned back to her. "Who are you?"

She smiled with a nod. "I'm a seer," she replied. "Centaur's have different kinds of seers than those of humans – like two souls sharing the same body. But you are avoiding the subject, Emrys. Tell me: why do you stay?"

"Because he needs me," he answered her question simply.

Her face became distraught with confusion. "It seems he already has everything he needs. He has a beautiful maid to be his lover, his great knights to be his companions, and a good servant to serve him. He doesn't need you."

He winced at the truth but his posture didn't falter. "He needs a wizard to protect him from the constant evil magical threats."

She snorted. "And does he appreciate you like he does the others?"

Merlin's lashes lowered as both of them knew there was no appreciation for his efforts. "He doesn't know about my magic," he answered.

"Look at your friend," she gestured to Lancelot. "You were able to change his mind. Why do you doubt your ability to make the prince change his?"

"He's grown up with the teachings that magic is nothing but evil – teachings from the very man who has made many humans fear magic. How-"

"But he can have his own independent opinion."

"It's not his place to go against his father."

"Isn't it?"

"No."

"Then how would you change Arthur's mind about magic?"

The question caught him off-guard. It wasn't like the thought never crossed his mind. He thought about it a million times over the three years he had spent with Arthur. Each time when he came close to exposing his magic to Arthur something always happened that made it impossible for him to tell the prince. "I believe one day he will realize the good things I have done for him."

"And what if he doesn't? What if he puts you to death when he finds out?"

"Then I will escape and I will protect him from the shadows."

"Even if he betrays you like that?"

"Yes."

There was a long silence between the centaur and the warlock.

"You believe in him that much?"

His lips smiled sadly, knowing there was no point in lying since he was already informed of her ability to detect lies. "Yes."

Anastasia sensed something very strong about Merlin's honest answer. The feelings from the powerful warlock for his future king are of pure love, loyalty, and devotion. She hadn't felt such a strong, divine bond since the time of King Bruther's reign: the bond between him and his court sorcerer, five hundred years ago. "Then it is best you give Arthur some insight, Emrys. The longer you wait the stronger his hatred of magic grows, until it can no longer be reversed. If that were to happen, even with your great power, you won't be able to stop him."

Merlin went silent for a few long seconds before nodding.

"And," the centaur added, "If you need time to organize your thoughts, I believe it is wise to do so."

"But Arthur-"

"Can wait," she interrupted, sounding genuinely concerned. "It is time for him to see how much he needs you."

* * *

When Hanthur arrived at the stables he found Evelyn in her magic clothing that had transformed her into a boy, saddling the horses. Though he could see she was still upset with him, he was glad she had kept her promise – mainly because she wouldn't dare risk her beauty. He did feel a little guilty from what Gaius had said to him earlier but he needed to think about the greater good from doing this. Even if Evelyn didn't know where the book was, she could still be dangerous – at least with this promise, she wouldn't be able to betray him.

Evelyn glanced up to him with her boyish form from where the horses were. She still looked pretty pissed but she didn't say anything. "The horses are ready," she said with fake politeness, mixing with the anger in her – _his_? –voice.

Hanthur just gave her a placid stare and checked the horse's saddles. She smirked. "What? Do you think I will try and murder you to get over the promise?" she said smugly and he scowled at her. "If only we could just kill to terminate a promise, but unfortunately, even murder will make us uglier than it being broken."

He didn't say anything else to her, knowing it would only transform a useless argument. He mounted onto the horse and Evelyn mounted onto hers after him.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked as they began riding their horses toward the front gate where the other knights were waiting for the Arthur's command.

For a long moment she thought he wasn't going to answer her, but without turning to her he said, "You wouldn't understand even if I told you."

She frowned but she didn't push for more questions. She mentally told herself that she really hated his guts.

As Hanthur and Evelyn arrived, Arthur was just coming out from the main gate with his red cloak trailing after him. For a moment, Arthur and Hanthur shared an understanding look before he went to mount onto his horse. They knew this mission was more than just a search party – and they were ready for it.

Meanwhile, they didn't see Morgana was staring down to them from a distance. She smiled wickedly, knowing that without Arthur it will be easier to put the king under the dark spell.

She waited until night came and the king was sleeping soundlessly in his bed. She whispered a spell to put the king into a deep slumber as she came in and tied the mandrake root underneath his bed.

Her grey eyes were glowing in the night as she watched her king's chest rise up and down. Her lips curved into a creepy smile, wanting to see Uther suffer from this dark spell as he twisted and turned. "Sweet dreams, _my lord_." With that, she moved out from the room as swiftly and quietly as she came in, her wicked smile only widening as she walked down the dark corridor.

* * *

**A/N:** **REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW!**


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: Okay I know I haven't update for a while when I promise to but the holidays got in the way and then school start again. I will have to tell you some bad news. Here it goes: (1) I have to update as lower from now on for this is my las semester to graduate so if I disappear for a while doesn't meant I will stop writing this story or the others. (2) My beta disappear on me so this chapter, the grammar is not going to be that great so don't tell me it is bad. If you do then, I will literally discontinued posting even though I will continue writing it. I mean I never stop what I've started so I will continue writing but will not post it. So I give you a fair warning. **

**Sorry if I'm a little harsh on that but I'm pretty sensitive when it come to my grammar. **

**Other than that ENJOY! :D**

* * *

Chapter 10

It has been two days since Arthur left Camelot to tracked down the werewolves that invaded the kingdom but he haven't had the chance to slip away from camp. He needs someone behind to keep the group together and assure them his disappearance is not to be alert. He wouldn't want his father sending knights searching for him. He knows his men well. Among some of them are very good trackers. They will know his whereabouts in no time. If they found him in Essetir, there is no doubt his father will send an army over. He would not want a war to start.

Also, Arthur could see Hanthur has grown very impatient with him. Arthur doesn't really understand why the boy wouldn't have any feelings for Merlin. Despite Merlin's clumsiness, laziness, tardiness, and lack of acknowledge, the younger man is cute, thoughtful, loyal, and devoted. Arthur would give everything up just for Merlin—if only he is not the heir to the throne of his kingdom. If one day Hanthur admitted that he loves Merlin, Arthur would likely approve of it since he could really see the boy really care for his manservant. Hanthur is a good choice but why does his heart ache for the thought of someone else embracing Merlin?

That morning, he planned to speak with Sir Miles about the private matter of leaving the camp while he, Leon, Hanthur, and a servant he brought along with him are going to their separate direction but Sir Agravaine—his uncle—and another group of knights was send by his father to helped with the search. He spent all day, trying to convince his uncle and his group of knights to search in another location in the large forest.

After Agravaine and his knights were gone, Miles is no longer in the campsite. He will have to find the knight and speak with him privately sometime later at night. While he waited, he decided to looks at the maps he secretly sneak it out with him before he left Camelot. There are six different maps, all with different route to the castle Fyrien. His eyes were fixated on them carefully as he tried to find the shortest direction to the castle but the one with the shortest way is the one that go through the dangerous forest called the Bildungsroman, which is crawling with Shape-shifter. Arthur never saw a Shape-shifter before but he read about them in books. Shape-shifters can change their form and appear as any living or dead person's physical appearance and accessed to their thoughts as they were mimicking them.

During the Great Purge, all the kingdoms—including Camelot—failed to take down the Shape-shifter. Accordingly, all kings of all kingdoms agreed to use magic to absorb all the Shape-Shifter into the Bildungsroman forest and put a ward around it so that Shape-shifter can never come out from the forest. Although, anyone—anything can still enter but whoever enter into the Bildungsroman Forest hardly made it out alive. Anyone who survived the forest usually lost an arm or a leg or sometime both.

Rubbing his aching forehead, he saw Hanthur coming toward his tent—rather angry. Arthur is expecting the boy to be angry by now. He knows the boy have a very opinionated mind, especially when he is angry so Arthur didn't say much to let the boy speak his mind. "What's going on?" he asked the boy as he arrived.

The question seemed to anger Hanthur off even more. " 'What's going on?' " Hanthur repeated the prince's question, huffing angrily as if he has been running a marathon. "Merlin is out there somewhere with a pack of werewolves and injured that is 'what's going on'. Why are we even still doing here?"

"Would you keep you voice down?" Arthur whispered in a cold tone and the boy obeyed obediently. Usually, Arthur doesn't like being shouted at exclusively by a kid with no standard, but he wanted to test Hanthur's patient. Ever since he saw that sword fight between the boy and Leon, he has been curious about him. Hanthur is barely nineteen who still look like a sixteen years old boy but his tracking, sword techniques, and behavior seem as if it was mature—too mature for his age. Of course, Arthur saw Hanthur's flaws too: irrational, reckless, and act before thinking in the scene of desperation. "We have to wait for the right time," Arthur answered simply, pretending to organize the maps.

Hanthur slammed his palms to the table. "We don't have time! Merlin could be dead by now for all we know!" He said irritably in a hush voice.

Arthur glared at the boy. He doesn't like how Hanthur is making it seem as if he doesn't care about Merlin. As he recalled he saved Merlin's life numerous times and he haven't fail his manservant—not now, not ever. He admits to himself that he is as impatient as Hanthur when it comes to saving Merlin from whatever that is threaten him. He wanted to just leave his knights here and go find Merlin but he can't, knowing the consequences if he is being rash. "You think I don't know that? You think I like waiting here?"

"Then what are we still doing here? We won't find any werewolves here! Wherever Merlin is, is where they are. Why are we wasting our time here?"

"Going to Essetir is not as easy as you think, boy! If my father knows that Essetir are holding responsibility for the werewolves attack, he will send an army over and there will be a war! Not only thousand of lives will be kill, we will also definitely fail to save Merlin!" he said sternly with a quiet voice. After an angry staring contest between them, Arthur finally sighed as he rose up. "I understand that you are worry about Merlin but give him credit. He is not as helpless as you think. He is not a damsel in distress," he said calmly.

Hanthur broke his stare with prince, straightened himself, and worked his jaw as he nods acknowledging it. Arthur knows the boy wanted to punch him for waiting this long just to begin the search for Merlin. Without any words, he was going to walk out but Arthur called to him, "Hanthur." The boy turn back to the prince. Arthur give him a darken stare. "Don't you ever raise your voice on me again or it will be your head the next time. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sire," Hanthur, muttered before he stalked away.

When he was away, Arthur sat back down. He doesn't really understand himself going soft on this boy. Usually, he will send whoever disrespect him to the dungeon or punish them in some harsh way. There is just something about Hanthur that he could really allowed himself to hurt him.

Sighing, he rubbed his temple. Stressful time like this, Merlin usually gives him a neck and shoulder massage—something that Merlin is actually good at. God, he missed Merlin. Four days without Merlin and it felt like four years to him. He just wished he doesn't have this prince's responsibilities—so then, he could admits his secret desire for Merlin and travel anywhere all the kingdoms freely with the younger man. If only he is not a prince.

* * *

Lancelot put his hand on Merlin's forehead and his face furrow in worries. It has been two days since Merlin was brought in with Elyan. Without medical care, his wounds seemed to have been worsened and Elyan also still haven't awakened from his sleep, which added to his worry. "Is there anything else you can do you for them?"

The centaur shook her head. "Without the right herbs, I can not heal them," she said apologetically.

He has to broke them out and seek help but he can't carry both Merlin and Elyan since Anastasia is too small to help him carry anyone, which leave him only one choice. "I will escape from here and seek for help."

Anastasia looked terrified. "How are you going to do that? They are werewolves! They will know you are trying to escape before you could get out from this place!"

He swiped a hand through his dark hair frustratingly. Merlin had helped him a lot in the past. He can't just wait and see him died in this dark and dreary place. "I don't think Merlin is not going to live pass tonight if we don't do anything," he said upsettingly and kicked the hay nearby.

She glared up at him with a confused expression. "What? Merlin? I thought you were worried about Elyan," she said and he frowned at her. "I don't think we should be worry about Merlin, Lancelot. Elyan's condition need more attention," said Anastasia, which puzzle Lancelot a bit.

"What? Why shouldn't we worry about Merlin? His wounds have not completely healed yet. It's might even be infected by now," he pointed out.

She shook her head and kneeled beside the sleeping warlock. She opened Merlin's shirt gently as she can and show her dark hair savior the warlock's wound. The claw marks were still pink but almost completely heal.

"Is all magical being able to miraculously heal themselves?" Lancelot asked in awe as the centaur redressed Merlin.

"No," she replied and he notices she was nervous—as if she was hiding something.

He glowered at her suspiciously with his arms cross. "What is it? What are you not telling me, Stasia?" he asked, shorting her name.

She averted her eyes from his and gulped. She wasn't sure if she should tell Lancelot about what she knows but she can't find herself lying to him either. They've been together long enough and he had saved her life countless time. It felt wrong if she kept a secret this big from him. After a few long second, she finally replied, "Merlin is pregnant."

He gaped at her—doesn't know if he should be confused or surprised, maybe he is both. "What do you mean that he is pregnant? Merlin is a man!" he tried not to shouted but it came out louder than he intended it. Before she could answer him, she was interrupted by the creaking sound made from their cell's door.

A very tall man with long and straight auburn hair walked in. He has a very long and sharp face but beautiful with flawless skin and stunning golden eyes. He is wearing a black leather short sleeves jerkin with padded shirt, a black pant, and high leather boot with buckle upfront.

"Who are you?" Lancelot demanded.

The man didn't answered. "Hold him down," he ordered and Lancelot just realized the men behind this attractive captor.

Lancelot punched the man who first approached him and started to fight the others as they all grab a hold on him. One of them punch him on the stomach as another hit the back of his knees to make him kneel. "Take them," said the captor and head out as one of them lead Anastasia out and another carry Merlin after. Lancelot grunt and struggled to get up but they punch him across the face and left before he could get up. "No!" He ran to the door and screamed, "What are you going to do to them! Hey! Don't you dare hurt them! Merlin!"

* * *

Gwen was sitting on a chair in front of her table in her little house inside the citadel of Camelot. She did returned to work the very next day after the horrible encountered, but Morgana kindly gave her a few days off after what had happen to her. As she was on her way out from Morgana's room and she was about to turn to the right corridor but she quickly stop as she heard someone was arguing. It didn't take her long to notice that the voices belong to her king and his court physician in the corridor. She didn't mean to eavesdrop but she wasn't able to stop herself when she heard her brother's name.

"…Elyan risk his life to make sure that your majesty would have this map return to you. We should not abandoned him," said Gaius.

She gasped and happy tears touches her eyes. Her brother is alive!

"I would not risk many of my men's lives for the life of a peasant, Gaius!" Uther's voice thundered and her relief flee out from her body instantly. "Elyan is a good man and he shall retrieve honor back to his family's name in favor of the people of Camelot. But I will not send an army to search for him," she heard Uther said and her body shook with anger. Gaius was about to say something when the king cut him off. "End of the conversation. I will not hear of it any more!" Then he walked off and she heard the old physician sigh in disappointment.

After hearing what her king had said about her family, Gwen despised him even more. Uther have risk the lives of many men to find Morgana, his precious ward who haven't done anything for the kingdom but he wouldn't take any chances to find her brother who had risks his life for the safety of the kingdom. She loved her Lady dearly. They've know each other for as long as they remembered and Morgana has been good to her but that doesn't make Elyan's life not as important as hers. Ever since their father's death, Elyan had been running around trying to prove to the King that he is not like his father; who had give in himself to sorcery. Gwen believed his father did not do it on purpose. She was there in the dungeon with him before he died by the hands of the knights but Elyan was convinced the different. Ever since then, he was determined to changed king's mind and now she believed he have gotten into more trouble than he thought.

She has to save her brother. She doesn't know how yet but she cannot just sit and wait to see what is going to happen. Standing up, she went to her father's room. She hasn't been in there since he died. She took out his clothes and put it on. She took the ribbon, which hold her thick hair as she took one last look at it. Never once she ever thought of cutting it but she know she can't travel outside the kingdom as a woman. Men will try to take advantage of her every chance they got. It would be safer to travel as a boy.

With a deep breath, she started to cut her hair until it was the length underneath her ear. She wondered if Arthur would still love her with this uneven short hair but she couldn't let that shadow her decision. She knows her place in the large population in Camelot. Even when she was with Arthur, she still felt it that it might be a dream—a dream that she might woke up anytime. She loved Arthur and knows he is nothing like Uther. She even sometime wondered if they were really father and son for they are so different.  
Elyan is her only family left and she has to save him. As she know Arthur, he would not let her go if she is to tell him but as for now she can't ask him for help, he have orders that he can't disobey.

She packed a few piece of bread and beef jerky, a small wooden box of clean cloth and ointments, a water pouch, and an extra pant and shirt. She knows the path she is taking is a dangerous one. It is best to travel light. She saw Elyan's old hat by the corner and slowly took and put it on.

Then with one last look inside her little house—she wasn't sure if she will ever be back again—she closes the door and locked it. She makes one last stop to his father's old blacksmith market. She sold it to Igore after her father was gone but Igore still allowed her to come by since he was a very good family friend and an apprentice of her father.

Igore was a very large muscular man with a baldhead and brilliant green eyes. He wasn't wearing a shirt, only a black trouser and an apron. He have a young boy who is probably in his early teen running around, carrying water and she saw two new faces inside—must be Igore's new apprentices. He had been saying he needed more people since Adam is getting too old with the heavy hammer.

"…get your lazy bone back to work, boy!" shouted Igore as he saw the young boy flirting with his daughter, Lily. Gwen forgot it's in mid-afternoon—Lily always delivered lunch when her mother was ill. "Hello, young lad," Igore greeted, wiping his giant dark ashes hand on his apron. "How can I help you?"

Gwen smile a little that he didn't notice her. "I need a sword," she said in a fake deep voice.

"Well, you came to the right place. What kind of sword are you looking for?"

"My father's."

"Your father's?" he said in a confusing tone and took a good hard look at her. He gives out a little gasp. "Gwen?"

"Shhh!" She shushed him and covered his mouth as everyone gives them a curious look.

He wasn't sure about her intention but it seems the rumor about her brother and the tavern boy from Elisedd that has been going around seem to be the answer. "What are you looking at? Never see me talking to a customer before?" he shouted at his workers and they went right back to work as he pull her into a room, away from curious ears. "What have done to yourself? Your hair," he said.

"I'm going on a journey, Igore. I need my father's best sword. I know he gave it to you for safekeeping," she said straightforwardly.

He frowned, crossing his arms. "And what do you need the sword for, little missy?"

Gwen knows she cannot lie to Igore. He knows her too long. "I have to find my brother."

He gives her a disapproving frown. "What? No! It's not safe out there."

"I can't leave my brother out there, Igore."

"The prince and his knights are—"

"Looking for werewolves, Igore. They are not looking for my brother. I have to go. I have to find him. He is my only family left."

"But Gwen, you don't know what kind of people out there you will meet. Worst, there are sorcerers and witch and many dangerous creatures! I can not let you risk your life like that."

Gwen's face saddens. "Igore, my parents are dead," she said sternly. "If Elyan died, then I might as well die too, rather than being alone."

Igore gave her a very long hard look. "You can't go out there alone."

"I will be fine."

He sighed in defeated before walking behind a table and unlock a steel lock of a root cellar door. He opened it and pulls out the best sword that Gwen's father made. He handed to her. "I don't know about this, Gwen. You're a woman—"

"What? You think a woman can not travel alone?"

He grimaced. "Just be careful."

She gives him one of her sweet and assuring smile. "I will," she replied and turns to leave. "Thank you, Igore."

"Can you at least tell me where you're going first?"

She turns back to the blacksmith. "Elisedd."

* * *

Evelyn was eating the potato she roasted by the fire near Hanthur's tent. Everyone else was eating whatever they hunt or fish but she can't hunt—not like the human ways anyways—and she doesn't eat fish for she is one herself. She knows if she took off her clothes and turn into a woman, all the knights will come running to offered her their share but she knows they will want something in return.

She looked at her poorly cooked potato and frowned. If she had stay with Uncle Alton at Leon's family mansion, she would have had something better to eat. Why did she have to make the stupid promise with Hanthur? He didn't even bother to give her proper food to eat.

She has just finished eating and was still drinking water from her pouch when Hanthur returned from wherever he went. She could see he was angry again as he started kicking and hitting the poor barrel nearby. Moment like this, Evelyn doesn't say anything. Knowing her voice might just irritate the mad man and he might get take it on her, she just ignore him for the five minutes he was throwing and thrashing around.

"He doesn't care about Merlin at all! If he does care about my mother at all, he would have leave this very second and save him! I can not believe that mad man is my father!" He ranted to himself.

She frowned, a little bit annoyed at Hanthur's bratty attitude. It is true, she notice that Hanthur is obviously not acting any princes she met before—like the entire spoiling obnoxious kind—but he is still throwing a tantrum like one. She finally rises up from where she sat as he decided to sit down; look absolutely tired from kicking and punching things. "Okay, thickhead," she started and he glared up at her darkly but she ignored it. "Apparently, you are not very bright when it come to politic so I'm going to teach it to you."

"I don't need lesson from creatures like you," he snarled.

She scoffed. "Creature like me?" She gave out a mocking laugh. "Then what is your mother-?" Before she could continue, he unsheathed his sword as he pinned her to the ground with the tip of the blade place closely on her neck.

"My mother is not the same as you," he hissed angrily but she didn't blink from his threat.

"He is magic, is he not?" She asked challengingly as their eyes pierce into each other. She broke the staring and sighed. "Your father is smarter than your give him credit for, thickhead. Just because he doesn't rush into a pit of fire like you wanted him to, doesn't make him lack sentiment."

"What are you talking about?"

She rolled her eyes. "Look, think about it. Essetir—" she stopped as she heard someone clear their throat. Both of them look up and realized that it was Leon. They realized what kind of position they were in and Hanthur quickly climbed off from her. Hanthur's cheeks show a little tint of pink from embarrassment, which Evelyn find it oddly amusing. Hanthur never show such shy and cute behavior in front of any of the women Evelyn saw having an either love interest or lust interest with him. Even with him on top of her a few seconds ago, he didn't have a hard on. She believe herself to be a very stunning woman so there is no way a man would not have a hard on when it come to her. Why Hanthur show lack of interest to women? He must like men. She thought. But does he know that?

The blond knight has turned his back on them, also blushing. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt," he apologized without looking at them. "I just want to you inform you that Arthur already arrange Sir Miles to take on this search. Sir Miles will cover for us for four days, claiming we are searching in another direction and will meet them at the bridge near the Valley of the Fallen Kings. So go get ready, we're leaving before sun rise," he said before scurried away.

Hanthur frowned, crossing his legs and arms. "Why did it take him so long just to prepare a rescue mission?" He turn to her and she was smiling like cat. "He is a prince, can't he just leave the campsite without telling someone?" He asked instead, ignoring her expression.

Evelyn sat up, gives him disappointed look. She decide not to bring up his sex interest until another time. "Is that what you do in the future?"

She notice he was no longer feeling anger but a little sad. "It's always think fast or be killed from the time where I am from," he answered her.

She closed her eyes and exhaled as she bend her knees up, wrap her arms around her legs, and rest her chin on her knees. "Well, thickhead, you are not living in your time anymore. There are no battles everywhere you turn here so you don't have rush. You can plan and work thoroughly with it," she said monotony and earn a small smirk from him. "And stop pestering your father about your mother like a little girl. You can't blame him when he had no idea about his future with Merlin yet. So for now just be a good little son and help your parents fight the storm that you've been telling me."

He stared at her questioningly. "Does that mean you're willing to help me?"

She finally opened her eyes and stare at him. "No," she replied wittily with a smirk, which make him scowled. She added, "But I can't get away from the promise so I guess I'm stuck."

Hanthur remained quiet for the rest of the night and went to sleep a little afterward.

Evelyn stay up and watch the fire flickered until it died down. She was wondering why didn't just break the promise and leave. She had done it before but that was when she had forever to gain her voice and beauty back. However, now that the Anextiomarus Bliss was broken, breaking a promise will make her ugly and have a scorned voice for a lifetime.

Evelyn sighed in distress and finally decides to sleep for the last few hours before she is going on the journey with this thickhead time travel prince.

* * *

When Gwen arrived in Elisedd village, the sun is already gone down and it was dark outside. The village was extra quiet. It's understandable since the attack was only two days ago. She knows she had to find an inn soon. She gulped as she walked past the tavern where the werewolves attack. She had a sickening feeling in her stomach, as she can still smell the stench of death from it. There were tears forming in her eyes as she think of her brother. She muttered to herself that Elyan is still alive; the undertaker didn't identify any of the dead remains as her brother so he had to somehow survived it.

She inhaled uncomfortably and turned her attention away from it. She walked until she finally found an inn. When she walked in, she realized there weren't many people—look almost empty. There were only an old couple sitting by the window and a very attractive and very tall man with short sandy blond hair, who is talking with a flirty curly red hair and green eyes barmaid by the bar.

As she walked in, another red hair barmaid but with honey-colored eyes pop in front of her—almost give her a heart attack. "Hello, handsome lad! My name is Isabella. Is it food you're looking for or a warm bedroom?" she shouted rather cheerfully and unaware of Gwen's true gender.

At the corner of her eyes, Gwen can see that the sandy blond hair man who is talking with the barmaid turn his attention her way but she ignored him. "Both, please," she said in a deep and convincing male voice.

Isabella smiled toothily as she gestured Gwen to follow her up the upstairs. As they were going up, Gwen could feel the intense stare from the man and finally, she glance up at him. He didn't look away as she stared down to him, which she thought it was odd and creepy. "Excuse me, Madam Isabella," she said, halting the barmaid from walking any further. "Who was the other young lad who is talking to your…um…sister?" she asked, wasn't sure how this older barmaid is relates to the younger one.

The barmaid giggled gleefully and shyly punch Gwen's arm. "Oh, how sweet of you, sir," she said. "But I don't know who he is. He came here the day after the attack. He hasn't said much about himself."

"You never saw him came by before?"

Isabella shook her head. "No."

Gwen decided that the man was just probably a creep for staring at her like that. "Anyways, did Prince Arthur and his knights pass by here?" she asked.

The barmaid turned to her and with a suspicious look at her, she nod. "Two days ago, they made a quick stop here, before leaving to the Broceliande forest." She opened a door to her right side to a simple room with only a bed and a table.

"Did they clear up the…Campbell tavern?"

Isabella shrugged with her head shook. "No, apparently, they still needed it for evidence," she answered with her eyes squinted curiously at Gwen. "Why?"

Gwen shrugged. "Nothing. I'm just curious," she said and went into the room.

"I will bring up your food," she said and with a nod from Gwen, she left with the door closed behind her.

Gwen put down her bag of supplies and took a seat in one of the four chairs that came along with the table. She was tired from all of the walking. She had never come this far out from Camelot before. She admitted it; it was a little scary to go out on her own for the very first time. As she was no longer inside the citadel, she wanted to turn back but the small hope that her brother might have survived the attack keep her going. Although, she doesn't even know where to start to look, she will find a way eventually. When her father was sentenced to death, she couldn't do anything. She is not going to let the same thing happen to her brother too.

As she was wondering how she is going to sneak into the Campbell tavern, she fell asleep but was awaken by a knock on her knock. She yawned, stretched her arms and legs, thinking that it must be the barmaid delivering her dinner, she called, "Come in."

She gasped, as it wasn't the barmaid but the very tall and muscular man with the short sandy blond hair man who entered her room. She quickly unsheathed her sword and holds it before her, defensively.

The man holds up his hands, showing that he had no weapons. "Don't be alarm," he said assuredly. "I'm a friend of Elyan."

She gave him a questioning stared. "What?"

He placed a hand to his chest as he introduced himself, "My name is Percival. I met your brother in King Odin's kingdom. He had saved my life from the evil king's hand and I made him a promise that when he needed my help, that he," he reaches a hand under his shirt—Gwen watch him intently—and took out a letter with a metallic seal of a picture of a beetle monkey biscuit on it. Her eyes narrowed in relief as she notice the seal of it. She created it that one for Elyan after all. It was something she and Elyan do for fun when they were younger. Their father occasionally created seal stamp for lords and councilors of the court. "—that he send me a message."

She didn't lower her sword. "How did you know I'm his…brother?"  
Percival smiled. "Elyan never mention of a brother but he did mention of a sister name Guinevere," he replied. "You and Elyan look very much alike. It is not a mystery for me to solve."

"Who are you?"

His eyes lids lower to the ground for a moment before looking back up at her. "I'm a ranger."

"A ranger?"

He nodded.

"And why should I trust you?"

"Because I'm all you got."

After a long and hard stared at the ranger, she knows she couldn't really travel alone into the Broceliande forest. Worst, she might run into Arthur and right now, it is not the time to face her lover and explained herself. She hated to admitted but this ranger is all she got for now. Finally, she lowered her sword. "Do you know where my brother is?"

Again he nods. "I was at the Campbell tavern earlier today. I saw a scribble under a table saying 'Essetir, Fyrien'," he answered.

"But Essetir is the opposite way of Camelot from the Broceliande forest," she said in confused.

"I think our Camelot Prince have something about that."

"Arthur," Gwen said in a questioning tone, wondering why would her prince is going to Essetir. Did he knew that her brother was alive? Is he going to Essetir to rescue her brother?

* * *

**A/N: **I know Merlin didn't appear much in this chapter but the next chapter is going to concentrate on him, Lancelot, and Ellyan. I wasn't planning to use Gwen in the story much but after watching Merlin last episode I decide to give her a role in my story. How do you like it? **REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW!****  
**


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaim: **Merlin belong to BCC, not me

**A/N:** Sorry for not updating for the longest time. I'm just very busy with school. I will post more as soon as summer start! But for now, it's going to be very slow.

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**babyangelholic-** Yes, Merlin is pregnant but I don't know it was a happy thing. Read and see :D

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* * *

_Five Days Earlier…_

Nyssa, a maid, walked gracefully through the corridors and up the stairs with her master's food with a silver plate and cover, in hope no one will see her suspicious. A couple of sore-eyes of 'werewolves' that was placed by the traitor, Rigiel, were giving her a cautious look but she gives them a placid stare in return. She knows they won't hurt her, not unless Rigiel tells them to, which he won't since she is her master's favorite maid. She give them an sneer when she passed them and into her master's room, which is the tallest tower of all.

Her master was sitting on a comfortable chair by the window, staring out. He had both of his hands on his large belly protectively. His belly is huge now compare to three months ago when he become Rigiel's prisoner. Nyssa couldn't believe Rigiel would betray her master. Her master loved Rigiel and never sees any of the werewolves unworthy of his loves. She doesn't understand why Rigiel would do such a thing like joining the Dark Wizard and murdered her master's husband.

Her master and his husband just found out they are having a child five months ago. Oh! How happy they were before tragedy struck them. Nyssa grieve with her master when she heard from the bastard Rigiel's mouth that he had killed her master's husband after he invades her master's land and castle with shape-shifters. Shape-shifters, Nyssa haven't see one of them ever since the Five Kings of the Five Kingdoms seal them in the Bildungsroman forest. How did Rigiel have them out? Nyssa doesn't know but she is sure it has something to do with the unknown dark wizard who came with Rigiel when he brings chaos to her master.

When she thought all hopes were lost, a certain small creature came to her through the crack of the ruin castle's wall with good news.

* * *

Arthur was sitting on his bed in his tent. He knows he should be resting since it was will a long journey to Essetir but he couldn't sleep. Two days he had been very patient with going through every maps of Essetir, finding shortcuts and secret route to Castle Fyrien but the hope of finding Merlin alive become thinner and thinner with times. He whispered silent curses to his father for sending his uncle. Finding the werewolves is important, but was it necessary for him to send his uncle? He is not a fifteen anymore.

Sighing, he laid down on his comfortable bed, placing an arm over his eyes as he wondered if Merlin is okay. His heartache painfully as an image of Merlin being beaten up and bleeding somewhere—worst, he might be already been fed to the wolves. Groaning, he sat right back up with his heels on the ground. He can't stand of staying in the camp anymore and grabbed his bag of supplies and headed out.

He walked to Leon's tent and gives him a light shake on the shoulder. The blond knight looks startle but relaxed as soon as he realized that it was the prince who woke him. "Sire," he started.

"Shh…" Arthur hushed him and nodded toward Hanthur's tent.

Leon nodded understandingly before picking up his ready-to-go bag of supplies, which is resting next to his bedside. Arthur and he went to Hanthur's tent next.

* * *

Lancelot was sitting with his back against the wall. It has been a few hours since they took Merlin and Anastasia from the prison cell. Elyan hasn't waked up yet but his fever is slowly fading. Still, he can't help but worry about his friends. It would have been easier to escape if the whole place is not crawling with werewolves.

Suddenly, the chocolate-color man stirred and his eyes fluttered open. Lancelot quickly went to his side. "Hey, hey, are you okay?" he asked.

Elyan looked scare for a second but it quickly fade when he realized he was back in the prison cell he was first brought in before he went into the interrogation with that blond bitch of a witch. He never thought in his life that he would feel safe in the prison cell of all places. "Lance," he said in relieved, sitting up and rubbing his still aching head. Then he realized the child centaur and the short dark hair man was gone. "Where is Anastasia and the other man go?" he asked.

The dark hair wanderer grimaced. "They took them."

Elyan give him a disbelieved stared. "And you let them?"

"Of course not! There were many of them. I couldn't fight them all," Lancelot yelled defensively.

Elyan regret his words. He should have not doubt his new friend. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "What happen?"

Lancelot shrugged. "They came in here and just took them. I couldn't do anything as they held me down."

Again, Elyan rubbed his head frustratingly. "It's my fault that man was in here. He is my responsibility. I shouldn't have—"

The Wanderer put his hand on the chocolate-color man's shoulder. "It is not your fault. You were under a very a dangerous interrogation spell."

"But he was in here because of me."

Lancelot gives him a questioning stare. "Why are you here?"

Elyan stared at him for a good few seconds, debating if he should tell this new friend about his life. He has been through a lot the past year running around the five kingdoms. He also sees a lot too—from bad magic user to good magic user and from nasty creatures to beautiful creatures. "Well," he started. "At first, I went into the world determined to prove to my king that I am not like…" He looks hesitant for a bit. "My father…who had gives in to magic. I was confused about my father's action and was furious at him for helping people with magic."

Lancelot gives his chocolate-color friend a skeptical stare, wasn't sure if he hate the magical beings.

He rolled his eyes as he saw how his wanderer friend looks at him. "I don't hate them anymore. On my journey I realized that magic is just like a weapon. It depend on the wielder," he said with a sigh. "It is why I can't return home because I see things different now and I understand why my father did what he did."

"Why can't you go home?"

Elyan laughed dryly. "Come on, I can't go back to Camelot and watch my king kill innocent witch and wizards. Not when I know there are good in magic, not just evil."

"You're from Camelot?"

Elyan nods. "Born and raise there. I have a sister too," he said, smiling. "Her heart was broken when our father died. She was such a sweetheart."

Lancelot smiles along with his friend. "What's her name?"

"Guinevere."

* * *

Merlin stretched his legs and arms up as he woke up from a blissful sleep. He hasn't slept this good for the past few weeks. He opened his eyes to meet the afternoon light that were gleaming down from the window behind the white curtains; he realized that he wasn't in his room. Of course he is not in his room, the bed is way too comfy. He quickly sat up and looks at his surrounding. He is definitely not in Camelot or the little prison cell with Lancelot and the child centaur.

The room was as huge as Arthur's room back in Camelot but it was empty with only white marble walls and the large comfy bed he was on. There is noise to his right side and when he looks toward it he saw a large balcony with a round stone table in the middle and four matching chairs. He swung his legs over the side of the beds and walked onto the balcony and gasped as he saw dozens of Wyvrens flying around the castle of Fyrien and there were humans taken into the castle in chains.

"I see that you are awake?" said a silky voice from the door, which startled Merlin.

He turns around and stared at the new stranger with wide eyes in surprised and awe. The person who is standing in front of him is a beautiful man—about the same height as Merlin but with long straight red hair and deep emerald eyes—holding a silver trade of a set of teapot and two cups. As he lower his eyes to the man's stomach Merlin realized that the stomach was round like a pregnant woman's belly round.

He smiled gracefully as he noticed the warlock have noted his stomach. "My name is Alastair," he introduced himself as he strolled into the balcony and lay the brass trade down.

Merlin glared change from surprise to suspicious in a distance at Alastair as the beautiful man place a cup in his direction. "Are you the one who brought me here?" Merlin asked.

"No," Alastair answered honestly and pours them some hot tea. "It was Rigiel who brought you here. I apologized for his…ill competency. He was never very good with hospitality skills anyways."

"You are the same as him, a werewolf?" Merlin asked.

Alastair laughed at the question, which seem to puzzle the young warlock. "No, I'm not a werewolf but we are relate in someway," he answered but it still leave Merlin confused. "You sure know so little of the magic world, Emrys." His green eyes glistering toward the darken blues one. "It is not a secret of who you are in the world of Magic. It is say you are the only one who can bring magic back so it is wise that we don't harm or offend you in any ways."

Merlin went silence for a few long seconds. He doesn't understand why would he be brought here and he wondered where Lancelot and Anastasia are right now? Are they still in the prison cell? And what does this Alastair want with him? " Where are my friends?" he asked.

"The human and the centaur? They are fine," he replied airily. "But I am not sure how long your friend, Elyan, would last. Maybe not tonight if he doesn't get any help."

Merlin's knitted in anger. Even though he had no idea who this Elyan is, no one should die. "What do you want from me?"

Alastair sighed and rests a hand on his round stomach soothingly. "I need you to find my husband."

The warlock gives him a confused stare. "Your husband?"

He nods before gesturing the young warlock to sit. "If you want to know, I will tell you but it is a long story. It is best for you to sit," he said politely. Merlin doesn't trust this creature in front of him but right now, he could felt his magic was not fully recovered. It is not wise to use it now. After a few seconds, he decided to listen to what Alastair has to say and took a seat facing him. "I'm a Lycan," Alastair started. "We can control our form better than werewolf—although, we did taught them to control their wolf form for the last ten years."

"You taught them?"

The Lycan nodded. "Even though the Lycan and the Werewolf are very alike when they transform, Lycan can control their urges to kill. But Werewolf in the other hand, they can't control and kill at will—friends or foe."

"What make you change your mind and help these poor creature? I don't believe it was from the goodness of your heart?" Merlin sneered.

Alastair's eyes matches Merlin's. Merlin could see that the Lycan's face held up high with grace but his eyes held shame. "Lycans originated from Werewolf. We evolved into a better breed over time. We can retain our human intelligences and personalities during our wolf form. So because we were smarter, we kept the werewolf as our slaves."

Merlin's brows furrowed. "So you enslaved your ancestors?"

"It's not something we are proud of."

"Really? Did you think of that now after the great purge?"

"Yes," Alastair replied, sounded almost like reluctantly. "But we did good for them now. We taught them how to control their form."

"And you couldn't done that earlier?"

"I was only three years old when Uther slaughter my clan. I wasn't even old enough to know what slaves were," he said defensively and Merlin could see him speaking as if it was from experience. "My whole clan was burn to the ground within one night. I was saved by a couple of werewolves who was apparently my family's slaves…I-I didn't even know about the slave thing until I met my mate," he said honestly.

"Your mate?"

Alastair blinked as lean back to his seat.

This time, Alastair didn't hide his shame but Merlin didn't say anything since he could see a great sadness in the Lycan's eyes. "Three months ago, my…mate, Ulrik, and the Lycans went on their daily hunt and they never returned," he replied in a settling voice. "And then Rigiel show up with _them_."

Merlin gives the Lycan a questioning stare. "_Them_? Who are '_them'_?"

"Shape-shifters," he answered hauntingly and Merlin gaped. Merlin knows of the shape-shifter. He heard horrifying tales of them from the elders back in Ealdor. They terrorized the land even before the great purge. Last time, anyone heard of them, all the kings of all kingdoms have seal them away in the Bildungsroman forest. _So how the hell did this one Werewolf release them?_

"How did they escape?"

Alastair shook his head; genuinely show that he doesn't know. "I was kept as a prisoner here," he throw his hand up to the quarter of the castle.

Merlin leaned forward, glaring at him piercingly. "There is a reason why you're telling me all of this, isn't it?"

Alastair nodded, apprehensively "I need your help."

Merlin scoffs with a taunting laugh. "You threaten a life of a…" he paused, thinking if he should consider this stranger named Elyan a friend. He shook his head a little. Even though, Elyan is not a friend, he is still a living human being and that is a good enough reason to help the fellow. "…person and now you are asking for my help? Why should I help you?"

"Because you will need my help too."

"No, I don't—"

"You are with child, Emrys, and you will need my help if you want to live and that child to live," Alastair said sternly, pointing to Merlin's flat stomach, which confused him.

Merlin shook his head. "No. You are lying."

"You're pregnant, Emrys," he said with the tone of fatality to it.

Still, Merlin doesn't believe the Lycan one bit but as his eyes stray to the man's round belly, he knows it is possible that Alastair is telling him the truth. "I'm a male. I can't be pregnant."

"Emrys, in the magic world, you can."

Merlin stood up all suddenly and rest his palms onto the cold stone table, inhaling. He can't be pregnant. There is no way he is. Because if he is then there is no doubt that the child he is carrying right now belong to Arthur. He closed his eyes, mortified as he taking this frustration in. "You're lying," he said, haltingly.

Alastair grabbed Merlin's wrist and before he could act on it, the Lycan whisper a spell before placing it to the warlock's stomach. Merlin could hear a heartbeat, one that was not his own. "This is your child's heart," Alastair said sternly as their eyes piercing into each other. "In the magic world, as long as you and your lover are true mate and have magic, a child is not impossible to make. You are pregnant, young warlock." He slowly let go of Merlin's hand but Merlin didn't removed his own hand and continue to feel the life that was living inside of him. "But you will need help. Male pregnancy is different from female pregnancy."

He glared at him. "I can do my own research."

"Do you really think you will find anything about male pregnancy in the world of men? Just a moment ago, you didn't even know about your own unborn child. In the world of men, you won't find any information about them. They already got rid of all the books of the magic world," Alastair said confidentially. "You will need me if you want your child to live." He pointed to the warlock's stomach.

Merlin didn't say anything. He knows the life that was growing inside his stomach is real. He can feel it now but he is still working on believing it. In his head, he has no idea how to take in this new information. He had studied about magic with Gaius for the last two years, how did he miss about male pregnancy in the magic world? And why didn't Gaius tell him about it? It could be that the information isn't important enough since his mentor probably didn't know about his attraction to the Camelot prince.

As he thought of Arthur, a panic feeling suddenly took over his body. How will he tell the prince about the child? How would he explain to anyone if his stomach suddenly grows? He would have to leave Camelot and Arthur. A new anxiety sensation overwhelms at the notion of leaving the prince unprotected in the hand of Morgana in the kingdom while he was away. It also come to him that it was already obvious that that most of the magical living knows of his name, if his enemies know of his true identity then they will come for the child, especially if they know the child belong to Arthur.

He feels sickening to the pit of his stomach as he whispered, "I don't want it."

Alastair stared at the warlock in disbelieved. "What?"

Merlin looks at him in the eyes, hardheartedly. "I will help you get your mate back but I want you to get rid of this child for me."

It was the Lycan who was quiet this time. He couldn't believed what he is hearing from the warlock, who was suppose to save the magic world, wanting to get rid of his own innocent unborn child. He brings his hand to his round belly protectively. It pains him terribly of the thought of losing his child. He doesn't want to agree of helping the warlock to get rid of an innocent life but he needs his mate. Only his mate can freed him and the other werewolves who were still held prisoners in this awful place. It is selfish but many lives are at stakes.

"As you wish," said Alastair reluctantly.

Merlin blinked and inhaled shakily as he could feel his heart break a little for his decision. This is just not the right time for this child to be born. War is coming as Hanthur, Arthur's true future heir, had informed him. He cannot leave Arthur's side right now. "I have a request, though," he said.

"What is it?"

"I would like to take the prisoner Lancelot and the Centaur Anastasia with me on the journey," he said.

Alastair studied the warlock closely and answered, "You can take the prisoner but not the centaur or Elyan."

"Why not the centaur?"

"Because Rigiel removed her from this castle already."

"To where?"

"I do not know," he answered honestly. "But I believe they are building an army."

"Who is?"

"There was a dark wizard who came here with Rigiel. I do not know his name or what he looks like. I just know him as the man in a black cloak. He came here once every month with a new mission every time for Rigiel. Different prisoners from human to any magical creature was brought here before they were removed to another location," he replied, standing up and gesture his hand for the warlock to follow him. Merlin did. "My husband and his Lycans always taken the young werewolves hunting every full moon, to train them how to control their killing urges. They didn't return from their last hunt, which was about three months ago. Then Rigiel, who we thought dead, came to our hideout and brought us here. Whoever disobeyed would be slayed on the spot. As the leader of our group, I would rather be killed than obey but…" Merlin saw the Lycan paused and soothed his belly again, it makes Merlin hated himself. "Rigiel's parents were the one who raise me and my brother. It was heartbreaking to see him turn to be something so vile."

"Why did he—"

"_A few weeks ago, Matthias, the warrior mouse, came to me and told me he had found my husband,"_ Alastair interrupted, obviously doesn't want to speak of his history with the Werewolf whom took him as a prisoner. He continued his way down many halls. Merlin saws many eyes of werewolves on him. Why don't they just change back to their human form?_ "They are not werewolves," _Alastair's voice flow into the warlock's mind as he read his mind.

Merlin's eyes widen in surprise, realized that the Lycan is not actually speaking to him directly. He is using his mind like the Druid can.

Alastair took his hand and led him away from the ill creatures' curious eyes. _"My husband and the survivors Lycan and werewolves are held in the Perilous Land of the Fisher King."_

"_The Perilous Land? But how are we going to get there? Isn't it like a maze there?" _

"_Yes, which is why Matthias will be going with you. He will lead you to the Perilous Land," _Alastair walked down the stairs and Merlin realized they are going into the dungeon. _"I already have my maid prepare food for you. You will find it a mile away at the east from the escape route." _

"_Will you be in trouble for this?"_

"_Rigiel won't hurt me," _he assured as he took a torch from the wall and leading them toward the damp hall._ "But when you meet my mate, give this to him. He will knows I send you,"_ he took a necklace with a pendant of a black tree imprint on it from his neck and hand it to Merlin. _"Show him this and he will know that I send you." _He instructed and Merlin nods understandingly.

"_Will the werewolves know? Don't they have a great sense of smell?"_

"_Werewolves, yes. Shape-shifter, no." _He opened a gate and lead the warlock in. _"Come on."_

* * *

Lancelot sat there, couldn't believe that this man who is sitting in front of him is the brother of the woman he have love and left her a year ago. Was it fate or just a coincidence? Before he could ask any more questions, the cell's door open and he realized that it was Merlin and a beautiful man with a round belly?

Merlin could see the looks in both of Lancelot and Elyan's face that this is the first time they witnesses male pregnancy. "No time to explain," he said to them. "Lancelot, we have to go. I will explain on the way. Elyan, we haven't really introduced each other. I'm Merlin and I cannot take you with me but I will come back for you," he promised, grabbing the confused Lancelot's arm and pulling him out from the prison cell.

"Wait! What is going on?" asked Elyan.

The pregnant beautiful man steps up. "I'm sending them to get help. If Rigiel found you gone. He will track you down since you are the one that they wanted, not them. Please for the moment, cooperate with me," he said gently.

"Why should I trust you?" Elyan demanded, still not convince.

Merlin came forward. "Because he is all we got," he said sternly and Lancelot knows this pregnant stranger is not evil if Merlin trusted him.

Lancelot looks to his chocolate-color friend. "I'm coming back for you."

"And if I die before then?"

"I won't let that happen," said the pregnant man. "I know Rigiel is on another mission right now. He won't be back for two weeks as long as you stay here. If you leave here, the shape-shifters will inform him and then more lives will be at stakes. I promise you I will make sure you won't get hurt." He promised.

Lancelot and Elyan exchange look. "I will be back for you."

Elyan still look skeptical but he doesn't to risk other lives because he wants to leave this dreary cell. "All right," he finally gives in. "But promise me, you wouldn't leave me here even if I'm dead."

Lancelot gives his friend a quick hug. "I swear with my life, I won't leave you here or let you die," he promised and both of them gives each other an understanding nod before they left Elyan and the pregnant man lock the cell door again.

* * *

It took Alastair less then fives minutes to sneak both Merlin and Lancelot out from the castle. After half a mile away from the castle, Alastair turns to them. "This is as far as I can go," he informed them. "Travel another half miles from here, you will meet up with Matthias and your supplies." He pointed to a the forest up the hill.

Merlin and Lancelot nod understanding.

"Good luck," said Alastair.

Merlin gives him a small smile. "You too." Then they started running up the hill and disappear into the forest.

* * *

**A/N: okay since you all have been such a great crowd and very patient with me. Here is the spoilers for the next few chapter so stay tune :D oh and they are not in order so don't get confuse. **

**SPOILERS FOR THE NEXT FEW CHAPTERS:**

Arthur is standing back to back with Hanthur. Both of them had their swords unsheathed and holding itbefore them defensively as more then ten werewolves surrounded them. Their eyes are glowing gold and their lips growling, showing their sharp teeth. The prince wasn't sure if he and Hanthur are going to make it out of the Bildungsroman forest alive. It is not that he is afraid to die. He has been to many battles during the Great Purge but he never has fought with werewolves. Werewolves were supposedly died out way before he could even pick up a sword.

He turns to the younger man and for a moment they share the same thought and give each other an understanding nod before running toward their death.

* * *

"You can't be serious, Merlin. Killing it won't solve anything," Lancelot shouted as he is running after his magic friend down the hill.

"I cannot give birth to a child when there is a battle coming, Lancelot. Please understand," Merlin reasoned with his wandered friend.

"That is what a stranger from the future told you. It doesn't mean it can be true."

"That stranger is Arthur's true future heir you are talking about."

"So he said."

Merlin stop suddenly and his friend almost bump into him as he turn to face him. "Lancelot, Arthur will never accept this child. Arthur would want to kill it and kill me in the process."

"How would you know for sure he doesn't want this child?"

Merlin's face saddens greatly. "Because Arthur is Uther's son." Tears suddenly slipping from his eyes as he admitted it.

Lancelot was shock to hear it coming from Merlin's mouth. Ever since meeting the young warlock, he always said Arthur is different and that he is not like his father. Now he is admitting Arthur is like his father and Lancelot doesn't know how to reply.

Gwen run as fast as her legs can carry her. She can feel the ground trembling as she is running for her life. Behind her was a giant tree and it is angry with her and wanting to squashed her with its' feet. Coming to Bildungsroman forest is a mistake. She couldn't see Percival any more, probably abandoned her already. She couldn't believe she is going to die in this dark forest.

* * *

Arthur was frozen wordlessly by Merlin's confession. He could feel his heart pounding rapidly and he know he was happy from it. He was going to answer Merlin but then Gwen's innocent and smiling face and his father's voice thundering about his responsibilities to the kingdom came into his mind. He pulls away from Merlin as guilt suddenly wash over him like he was splash with cold water. "Merlin, I can't do this," he said apologetically, and it hit Merlin like a physical blow.

His hands are shaking, looks very confused and hurt. "But I thought—"

"I can't hurt her," Arthur huffed out and moves further away from his manservant.

Merlin's lips thinning and his eyes furrow. "No, of course not," he said, try to control his voice. "But you can hurt me."

* * *

"My mother and I..." she paused and swept her small and thin fingers through her blond hair. "My grandfather—the eel merman—put an ancient enchantment on us when Prince Gunthur became king. We can never age until we found our true love;someone who will protect us. A kiss will break the spell."

"Let me guess, Leon kiss you?"

She looks at him sadly. "Five hundred years, Hanthur. It took five hundred years to find my true love. Do you know what's like to be immortal? For three hundred years, I watched all my friends died one after another. I stop making friends after those three hundred years. I don't see a point of making them when I have watch them died."

As Hanthur gazed to her, he realized she was crying. He sighs, hating himself for being cruel to her all this time. Sitting up, he walks over to her and put his arm around him. She was surprised but he ignores it with a blush. "I guess we have something in common after all, little mermaid," he said.

It wasn't much but she smiled and that is all Hanthur care.

* * *

Arthur lean forward to the younger man and hissed, "You wouldn't even kills the werewolves if they did murder Merlin? Werewolves are a vicious kind and my father is right to destroy them."

The boy glare up to the prince, anger tears are trailing down from his eyes now. "They are not the one that is vicious. It is us human who are vicious for we are the one is killing them, invading their land like a plague."

"Then tell me why they kill those innocent in the tavern?"

"Isn't it obvious? We are the one who murder their kinds first?"

"Magic is dangerous."

"I don't remember Werewolves ever use magic before, my prince," he snarled irritably. "Why did they attack our kind? Same reason as human when intruder enter their territory. Is it so wrong for them to kill to protect their own kind when we are doing the same thing? We are not so different from each other."

As much as Arthur hated to be wrong, he couldn't ignore of what Hanthur have said. He can't allow him to walk free for speaking ill of his father. He unsheathed his sword and glare at the younger man. "Draw your sword."

* * *

"Sometime I do wish that there will be no magic in this world. It was magic that took everything and everyone from me," Hanthur said.

"But, it was magic who brought you into the world, Hanthur," said Evelyn.

"If the world would have been saved by destroy all magic then I would wish not to be born."

"You can't mean that."

"But I do."

* * *

Tears swell up in Merlin eyes as his face crumble into despair as everything crashing down on him. "I can't do this," he said with realization how pity he is. "I can't do this anymore."

"Merlin," Gwen attempts to grab his hands but he pull away and look at both of them in disappointment.

"I quit," he said and finally Arthur looks up to him. "I quit."

* * *

"Hanthur," Evelyn said and Hanthur stop as he saw the trouble look on her face.

"What is it?"

She looks hesitant for a moment. "Merlin is pregnant."


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaim: **Merlin belong to BCC, not me

**A/N:** YAY! I REACH 100 REVIEWS! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH! XD

**Special thanks to: Kenya1234 for beta-ing this chapter and the last two chapters! **

* * *

Chapter 12

Shortly after Lancelot, Merlin, and the pregnant man left the dungeon, Elyan felt a sudden movement from behind his neck. Startled, he reached with his hand to touch for it. At first, he couldn't feel anything. He thought it must have been his imagination but then he felt it move again. This time he felt a horrible throbbing pain as though something crawled through his whole body, it made him fall to the ground, trembling. He let out a very painful scream as the throbbing pain traveled into his head and it was as if something was clawing at his skull.

Far away from Fyrien Castle's location, the blond witch was standing on the tallest tower of another ruined castle. Her eyes glowed gold and slowly faded as the visions of everything the prisoner Elyan witnessed flashed through her mind. She closed her eyes and a wicked smile curved up on her lips. She twisted around to two of Cenred greatest trackers. "Follow them." Her eyes flashes golden.

The trackers saw the image the witch imprinted into their minds. They bowed before her before they walked out.

In another direction, the opposite side from the Fyrien castle, she could hear the Camelot King howling in pain from the curse her sister planted. Everything was going according to plan.

* * *

Lancelot pulled Merlin into to his arms as soon as he realized the younger man failed to see two forms of lines of Essetir guards marching their way. Both of them looked on until the Knights disappeared returning to the other side of the hill where they came from. He finally let go of the warlock with a sigh.

They continued to run deeper into the forest until they were certain they were safe from getting caught.

"Where are we going by the way?" asked Lancelot. He still didn't know where they were headed. His magical friend was supposed to explain on the way but since there were too many of Cenred's Knights and shape-shifters patrolling around the area, they haven't really had time to talk.

"The Perilous land of the Fisher King," Merlin answered.

Lancelot stopped in his tracks. _"The Perilous Land of the Fisher King?_ Are you mad?"

Merlin would like to think so since no one really knows where the Castle of the Fisher King is located. It will be difficult to get to and even more difficult to leave. The only one who knows apparently is a mouse that informed a Lycan, one that Merlin wasn't entirely sure that he could trust. Overall, all of this could be a trap and Merlin felt like he is walking into it—even worst, he was dragging a friend along with him.

He tells Lancelot his whole conversation with Alastair-although, he left out the part about his pregnancy.

"So he also doesn't know where this werewolf Rigiel took Anastasia?" Lancelot asked after he listened to his magical friend's explanation.

Merlin nodded, knowing that his wanderer friend was very worried about the child centaur.

"Can we trust this Alastair?"

"I don't think he was lying to me."

Lancelot knows there is more. He knows it must have something to do with the pregnancy the child centaur told him about but it seems his magical friend is not willing to talk about it.

Lancelot was quiet for a long time and it gave Merlin a minute to doubt. "If you don't want to come along with me, I understand. This..." He really wanted to tell Lancelot about his pregnancy but he was afraid of what his friend might think. So he swallowed that truth. "This journey, I'm sorry but I can't be sure where it will lead me."

"Then why did you agree to take it?"

Merlin looks away but Lancelot could see the sadness written all over his magical friend's face.

"What are you trying to hide from me, Merlin?" He pressed, deciding to learn the truth instead. "Is this about your pregnancy?"

Merlin's eyes widened in shock. "_How_ did you know about that?"

"Anastasia told me," he said. "Now are you going to tell me what is really going on?"

Merlin's brow knitted together, his eyes were still wide but sad. He knows he can trust Lancelot. But if he is going to tell Lancelot, he will have to explain from the beginning. From _Hanthur's _arrival. "It might take a while."

"I'm all ears."

* * *

Nyssa put a hand over Elyan's forehead and continued enchanting a sleeping spell with a melodic voice. She was surprised when she came down to bring him food and found him on the ground, with his eyes rolled back and trembling like an earthquake. His heart beating an abnormal rhythm. Nyssa believed if she didn't do anything to help, he would have surely died. He could not, or it would anger the great warlock, Emrys. She enchanted a few charms to calm his nerves or else his heart might fail him. After ten minutes of chanting, he finally calmed down and fell asleep on her lap.

"How is he?" She stops as she hears her master's voice by the open cell door.

She turned to face him. "He is fine for now."

Alastair's glistening emerald eyes shifted from gold, his lips thinned in worry. "Come to my room after you make him comfortable." he ordered.

"Yes, master." she said before he left the prison cell.

Nyssa gently laid the chocolate-colored man onto the old futon surrounded by hay. She left him the food but whispered a spell to ward off insects and rats from getting to it. Before she left, she had the urge to touch his forehead softly and whispered another melodic voice of spell to relax him. Then she stood up and left the cell locking it behind her.

As she entered her master's room, she noticed there was a sack of supplies waiting by the foot of his bed. Her master was sitting in his usual spot near the window with his right elbow propped on the chair and his palm resting on his chin while long fingers were placed on his lips. His eyes looked like they were deep with worry. "Are you planning on going somewhere, Master?" she asked, making her presence known.

Alastair exhaled gently without looking at her. "No," he said. "If I leave, Rigiel will kill the werewolves and humans he has imprisoned here."

Nyssa went over to pick up the sack. "So it will be me who will be going somewhere then." she said but it wasn't a question.

Finally, her master turned to look at her with weary eyes. "You are a land nymph, tracking is your expertise."

"Who am I to find?" she asked curiously.

"My brother," he answered and she stared at him in disbelief.

"Your brother? I thought he was dead?" she said.

Alastair closed his eyes, mortified. "I am not sure but I keep having this feeling gnawing in the back of my mind that he is not dead. Rigiel said he killed my husband but Matthias found him alive. What if what Rigiel told me about my brother was a lie? What if he is alive?"

"So you are sending me on a hopeless path?" she asked.

He looked at her with eyes so sad that she could not bear to look at him. "According to one of the werewolves, he was last seen near the Bildungsroman forest."

Nyssa understood now why she would be the choice to go. The only living being shape-shifter that cannot take form is a nymph and only a nymph would be able to tell who is real and who is fake. It was the reason why the Five Great Kings of the Five Kingdoms captured nymphs and forced them to use their magic to imprison the shape-shifters into the Bildungsroman forest before her kind was slaughtered. Entering into the Bildungsroman forest would not be any problem for her. But, it had been five months. "Do you believe he is still alive?" she asked.

"I wouldn't ask you if I didn't." Alastair replied.

"It will take time. The Bildungsroman forest is huge and shape-shifters are not the only pest in that forest…a-and Rigiel, the shape-shifter will tell him of my disappearance." she said.

"I will deal with Rigiel. I know that he will not harm me and he is too much of a coward to enter the Bildungsroman forest." He said but she still looked hesitant. "I know what I have asked is huge but if you return my brother to me, I will return your freedom to you." he said.

Her eyes widened and her lips parted slightly. "My robe?"

Alastair nodded.

A smile of hope enlightened on her lips. She doesn't hate Alastair, she loves him as her master, a lot, but she still wanted her freedom. She wanted it for as long as she could remember. "All right." She finally agreed and grabbed the sack of supplies from the bed. "Is there anything else before I leave?"

Alastair's second request will be as troublesome as the first one. He knows what was implanted inside Elyan's head. As soon as he returned to check on Elyan and found him in the arms of Nyssa, he saw movement behind the chocolate-colored man's neck. He knew it was a Fomorroh; a magical snake-like creature with multiple heads that the high priestess used to enslaved minds. He knows that whatever Elyan saw before has already been shown to the blond witch, who is sided with Rigiel and the Essetir king. The only way to save the prisoner's life from this torment would be either by death or by destroying the mother of the Fomorroh. But, if he killed Elyan then Emrys would refuse to help him—might even kill him—and killing the mother of the Formorroh would not be likely since without knowing where it is. So it left only one other choice; take Elyan to a place where the witch could not follow—inside the Bildungsroman forest, the barrier will block the witch's connection with Elyan, only until Alastair knows his next step.

Nyssa sees that her master seemed troubled for a bit before answering, "Take Elyan with you."

"The prisoner? Why?"

"He has a Fomorroh implanted in him," he replied and she understood. "He will be safer with you in the Bildungsroman forest."

* * *

After Merlin explained everything to Lancelot, the wanderer was silent as he processed all the information about Arthur's future heir traveling to the past to prevent an apocalypse, his incident with Arthur during a hunt, which resulted in Merlin's pregnancy, and Arthur rejecting him afterwards.

"So this child you are carrying, is it this future prince, Hanthur?" Lancelot asked.

Merlin shook his head.

Lancelot huffed out as he finally understands why his magical friend was unsure of telling him this. Although there is still something, another question here that need an answer. "So what does this have to do with Alastair?"

Merlin looked hesitant before answering, "He is going to help me get rid of it." He started walking as if he was running away from his shocked friend.

"You can't be serious, Merlin. Killing it will not solve anything!" Lancelot shouted as he ran after his magical friend down the hill.

"I cannot give birth to a child when there is a _war_ coming, Lancelot. Please understand." Merlin reasoned with his wanderer friend.

"That is what a stranger from the future told you. It doesn't mean it can be true."

"That stranger is Arthur's _true _future heir you are talking about."

"So he said."

Merlin stopped suddenly and his friend almost bumped into him as he turned to face him. "Lancelot, Arthur will _never_ accept this child. Arthur would want to kill it and me in the process."

"How would you know for sure he doesn't want this child?"

Merlin's face saddens painfully. Arthur rejected him right after they made love. He meant nothing to prince but a warm body-Arthur made sure of it. "Because Arthur is Uther's son." Tears suddenly slipping from his eyes as he admitted it.

Lancelot was shocked to hear those words coming from Merlin's mouth. Ever since meeting the young warlock, he always said Arthur was different and that he was not like his father. Now he is admitting Arthur is like his father, Lancelot doesn't know how to reply to that. "You...you can't mean that."

Merlin looked away as he wiped the tears from his face. Everything is so messed up right now. He wished he could fix it but he knows that he can't.

He took a few deep breaths and willed himself to stop crying. "No matter what you say, I'm doing it." He stared at his friend evenly. "Even without you." Then he turned around and started walking again.

Lancelot let out a frustrated sigh as he watched the silhouette of Merlin's figure walk away. He has two choices here: one, he could go back and learn the whereabouts of Anastasia and help her or two, he could go to the Perilous Land of the Fisher King with Merlin, which could be a trap.

As Merlin's figure gets smaller by the second, Lancelot grimaced before running after his magical friend.

* * *

Gaius came into his King's bedchamber to check up on him for the third time since Uther collapsed in the Dining Hall. All night, Uther had been howling in pain but Gaius could not pinpoint where the pain was coming from. Sometimes, the King would mumble names—not just any name but names of dead people like his wife. At the moment, Uther was lying on his large bed with his eyes wide open—although, Gaius wasn't sure if he was sleeping or not.

If Gaius could not find the source of his King's sufferings soon, the King would surely die. The question now, how long? He had already sent word for Arthur to return to Camelot before rumors of the King's illness began to spread but the messenger came back telling the old physician that the prince was not at the camp where he was supposed to be.

At the moment, Morgana was doing her best with the King's duties in his stead, which was not really comforting to the physician. In his mind he knows Uther's sudden illness must have something to do Morgana but he did not have any evidence to back it up.

"Is he doing better?"

The physician turned around to find the Ward standing by the door. He moved aside as she approached to sit next to the King.

"I'm afraid not, my Lady." said Gaius.

Morgana caressed Uther's cheeks softly with worry in her eyes. Her behavior swayed Gaius' doubt slightly but he did not give in to it. "I've never seen him so weak, Gaius. Please tell me he will get better." she said.

He stares at her skeptically. "I wish I could but Uther is a strong man, my Lady. I am sure he will get through this." he said.

Her eyelids lower and she nods as in agreement. "Can I have a moment alone with him?" she asked.

Reluctantly, the physician nodded in askance and walked out of the king's bedchamber.

As she senses Gaius' presence is no longer near, she pulls back from the King and wipes her hands on her dress. An evil smirk plays on her lips as she enjoys the sight of Uther's suffering. "You think you have the worst, don't you, my King?" she snickered before her eyes flashed gold and Uther trembled in fear again. "You who make my family suffer shall suffer_ten times more!_"

Uther opened his mouth to scream as he saw his dead wife hovering over his head but Morgana made sure his scream did not carry to any ones ears until she was satisfied with his suffering for the night.

* * *

"You don't have to come with me." Merlin said as he noticed his wanderer friend trailing closely behind him. "Anastasia need you."

"Stasia is more capable than you give her credit for." Lancelot said.

Merlin frowned. "Are you saying _I am not?_"

Lancelot grinned at his magical friend. "No, you are plenty capable but you are carrying a _child_."

Merlin stopped walking and Lancelot went passed him. "Lance…"

Lancelot interrupted him sternly, "Merlin, I know I have no say about your child since it is yours but hear me out. All of these years, you have been _protecting _Arthur and even _pampering _him. You sacrificed so much, even your life, for him but Arthur hasn't shown you slightest amount of appreciation."

Merlin scoffed in disbelief. "That is because he doesn't know I have magic."

"Using you for _sex_ on a cold night has nothing to do with you having magic, Merlin!" He snapped angrily and his magical friend look stunned and hurt but he had to say it. "Don't you think he went overboard by using you like that? Just because a dragon tells you it was your destiny doesn't give Arthur the right to treat you like crap! And now this _unborn _child is going to die just so you can continue this destructive path? If you want to get rid of your baby, fine since I can't stop you. But _right now,_ it is still _alive inside of you_. So until the day you get rid of it I will _protect it_, which means_ protecting you also._" He turned and walked away. He knows he is being a jerk but killing an innocent life is not right and he hates it.

Merlin stood there in silence for probably only a few seconds but it felt like a long time as Lancelot's words echoed in his head. Deep down he knows Lancelot is right. After Arthur used him during the hunt, he has been very distant, like he suddenly doesn't want anything to do with Merlin anymore. Merlin brings his hand to his stomach unconsciously, his lips thinning as his eyes shimmer with tears. He _wants _this child—_Oh God!_ He doesn't want to get rid of it. He wants to keep the child so badly but he _can't_. What kind of life will this child have if he was to be born? He or she would hate Arthur if they were to find out. And what would _Hanthur_ do? He is the true heir to Camelot. He sacrificed his magic to come back to the past to save them. Merlin cannot and will not betray Hanthur like this. No matter how much he wants this child, he simply cannot keep it.

Merlin and Lancelot were silent for the rest of the walk until they reached an old abandoned and crumbling brick house. There were a bunch of haystacks around the house and evidence of broken toys. Merlin could sense someone with magic lived on this land, in this house. There is no doubt this was a home of someone with great magic.

"Is this the right place?" Lancelot huffed as they looked around.

"I don't know." said Merlin and then he spotted two leather bags with two-sheathed swords hiding between two haystacks. He smiled as he made his way towards it but Lancelot stopped him. "What is it?"

"Shh." he hushed his magical friend as he listened an odd sound like something scurrying around them. Lancelot went forward and picked up one of the sheathed swords and Merlin followed his friend's motions. But then everything went quiet.

"Are you the one Alastair has sent?" A tiny but strong voice demanded from behind them.

They slowly turn around and their eyes widened in surprise of the size of the small creature strapped in his small gold and red armor with a tiny needled sword held in his cute small hand. "Answer me or I shall cut you down where you stand." Warned the tiny mouse with a swirl of his needled sword.

Lancelot couldn't help but laugh. For all the things he has encountered in his whole life after meeting Merlin, this has got to be the cutest thing he's ever seen. If Merlin was thinking the same thing he wasn't laughing.

The mouse's eyes narrowed angrily at the taller dark haired man, not amused at all by the laughter. "What is so funny?"

Lancelot raised both of his hands in surrender as he stops laughing. "I'm sorry. You are so darned cute, I just couldn't help myself."

The compliment seemed to only offend the little warrior even more. "Cute? How dare you call me cute! I can cut you down where you stand and we will see what's so cute about this warrior!"

"Our apologies!" Merlin quickly said before the mouse warrior could make a move. "We should not have made a fool of a warrior," he said, glaring warningly at his dark haired wanderer friend. "My brave mouse," Merlin said as he kneels on one knee before the mighty mouse with respect. "Are you Matthias, the mouse warrior?"

Matthias nods and slowly lower his needled sword. "Aye, it is. Who might you be?"

"I am Merlin and this is my friend, Lancelot," he introduced.

Lancelot gives the mouse a nod as he turned to look at the wanderer.

Merlin wasn't sure if it was going to work, but he took out the necklace the Lycan gave him and showed it to the little warrior. "Alastair sent us." he said.

The mouse studied the necklace carefully before withdrawing his needled sword. "So this must mean you are Emrys."

The warlock smiled and nods.

"All right," he sheathes his needle sword. "We better get going. This place is crawling with shape-shifters. It is not wise to stay here long." He jumped down from the haystack and started walking toward an unknown direction to the warlock and the wanderer.

Merlin and Lancelot picked up the bags of supplies from between the two haystacks and followed the warrior mouse. It was a good thing the moon was full and bright or else they wouldn't be able to see the small mouse during the night.

"You are sure you know where you are going, little friend?" Lancelot asked.

Matthias didn't turn around completely but enough for the wanderer and the warlock to see half of his face. "Yes and no. It is kind of hard to find when the Perilous Land shifts every three hours."

"Please let there be a _'but' _somewhere." said Merlin.

The mouse chuckled. "Yes, there is a 'but'. See, I have a friend who has been there and back three times and is still alive to tell about it. He has an incredible sense of direction."

"What is his name?" asked Lancelot just as a random bird crowed loudly over their heads, which he found strange. Merlin, on the other hand, knows that this bird is not an ordinary bird. It is linked with magic.

Matthias turned and smiled at them. "His is name Gwaine," he replied and pointed toward the bird, "and I heard he has just arrived in a tavern in the next village."

When Merlin and Lancelot arrived inside the village, they could hear the drunken men sing in every direction anywhere a tavern was located. Merlin has propped up the collar of the leather jacket Alastair provided for him so the people wouldn't see Matthias hiding between the curve of his neck and shoulder. There are some drunken men walking either in groups or with a women in their arms. Merlin and Lancelot exchanged a look and wondered if how they were going to find their tour guide, Gwaine, since there were a lot of people around.

"How do we know who we're looking for?" Lancelot asked whispering.

"Just wait." said Matthias.

"For what exactly?" Merlin asked, sounding a little bit irritated.

"Just wait." the mouse snapped.

Then there was a very loud crash coming from a tavern in the middle of the village followed by a very loud voice echoed after the sound of that crash. Matthias smiled. "He is in that tavern." he said.

As soon as they entered into the tavern, Merlin and Lancelot witnessed a very tall man with long wavy dark hair being slammed onto a table before being pulled forcefully across it. The saw ruined food and drinks on the table and on the ground. Three or four large man started to beating on the tall man. Merlin and Lancelot turned to the warrior mouse, who is on Lancelot's shoulders now to see if this was the same man they were looking for. With a nod of confirmation, Lancelot sighs and steps up.

"Okay, okay, gentlemen, I think he's had enough." Lancelot said as he attempted to pull the large men off the dark haired drunk but one of the large muscled men grabbed Lancelot by the arm rather forcefully in response.

"He is not going anywhere until he pays the money he owes me!" he growled to the dark haired wanderer.

Lancelot's face retches up at the disgusting rotten smell as the ogre of a man's breath reaches his nostrils. "Oh! When was the last time you brushed your teeth?" he said, turning his head as far as he could from the man. The offensive comment took his large ugly friends' attention away from the unconscious drunk man, Gwaine. Merlin sees this as an opportunity and quietly, slowly, tries to pull Gwaine from the ground but he suddenly wakes up with a jolt and yelps, "Whoa! Whoa! What happen?" He glares confusingly at Merlin. "Who are you?" Then he saw Matthias on the warlock's shoulder. "Mattie?"

"Hey, who is the scrawny?" said one of them pointing at Merlin. All of the large and ugly men turned their attention from Lancelot and back to Merlin and Gwaine.

Merlin smiles nervously and Lancelot sighs. He easily twists the large man's arms behind his back and yells to Merlin, "Run!"

The warlock was dumbfounded for a split second processing what happened before grabbing the drunken Gwaine's arm and heading for the exit as Lancelot pulls some punches on the six large men. Gwaine sees that Lancelot is losing, he shakes Merlin's hand off from his and helps him Lancelot instead. Merlin rolls his eyes in annoyance and his eyes flashes gold sending the men away from his wanderer friend with an invisible force. Seeing this as a chance to escape, they all went for the exit.

They ran and ran until they were no longer in the village and back in the forest. It was only then, when they knew they were safe that they started to laugh. _At what? Nothing in particular_. Merlin doesn't even remember the last time he actually felt excitement running for his life from nothing very dangerous. It has been a long time since he actually had fun instead of being stuck pampering the bratty prince in Camelot.

Gwaine turned to them with a wide smile. "So who are you guys?" he asked.

"I'm Merlin." said the warlock.

"Lancelot."

The drunk nods acknowledging them before turning his attention to the mouse that is now on his shoulders. "If you are here, Mattie, that means we are going to the Perilous Land, right?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so mate," said the warrior mouse.

Merlin and Lancelot exchanged a dubious look. "You do know we are coming?" asked Merlin.

Gwaine gave them a smile. "Of course I know. It's not like you sought me out to buy me a drink. Who ever seeks me out always want a tour to that Perilous Land." he said. "And since you two were so nice to get me out from paying for my tab I will do this one for free."

* * *

Elyan was awake from the squeaking of his prison cell door. He looked up to find a beautiful woman with long wavy auburn hair and beautiful emerald eyes standing before him. "Who are you?"

"My name is Nyssa. Do you remember what happen to you last night?" she asked.

He shook his head. All he remembered was having a terrible headache.

"My master wants me to take you somewhere safe." she said and he glowers at her skeptically.

"Why should I trust you?"

"Because you will die if you stay here," she said with such finality in her tone that he knows she is not lying though he still can't be sure she is trustworthy. "Feel your neck." she said and he did so reluctantly jolting in fear as he felt movement. "The blond witch who interrogated you put a Fomorroh inside of you. It's a snake-like creature that controls the mind of their prey. In order to remove it we have to kill the mother but right now we don't know where it is."

Elyan huffed calmly. "So what's the plan?"

"I will have to take you somewhere safe." she said simply.

"Where?"

"The Bildungsroman forest."

* * *

**TBC**

* * *

**A/N:** I know. I know. I added two more OC characters and probably going to add more later in the future. I don't want to, honestly, but as I was writing the story, I realized that the TV series doesn't really have enough magical creatures that are not a villain so I have to create my own. I was going to make Nyssa an elf but I change my mind. Elf will appear later but not right now. And yea, I know Hanthur and Arthur didn't really have any part in the last two chapters but next two chapters are going to be about them; father and son moment.

And yay! Gwaine finally make his appearance! And yes, it seem like everyone is going to the Bildungsroman Forest except for Merlin, Lancelot, and Gwaine but trust me there are good reasons.

Okay, I haven't write a lot of MERTHUR but bare with me. Their story is worth the wait.

**Okay, I need everyone's help me decide:** Should I put vampire in the story? I was kind of icky about it. I mean werewolf, I get it but vampire...it's kind off, don't you think? But if I'm putting vampire in, they're probably sided with Mordred though. Well, let me know.

Lastly, **REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! XD **


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaim: **Merlin belong to BCC, not me

**Special thanks to: Kenya1234 for editing this chapter! And all the readers who take their times to review! MUCHO LOVES! (I would do the heart but won't let me. so HEART! HEART! HEART!)**

**A/N:** Yeah I have some times so I decided to write chapter 3. Okay the italic wording is a dream so when it ended, the dream ended too.

* * *

Chapter 13

_Hanthur could hear the sound of the wind whistling loudly and he could see the black skeleton branches wiggling high above him. He just realized he was lying down on the ground on his back. But where _is_ he? Where is this place? Despite the small detail of his surroundings, this place felt familiar. He's been here before._

_As he sat up and turned his head to look around he paused as he saw a familiar pile of rocks on his right side. He_

knows_ what this place is. It is the site of Gwaine's grave. One of his hands reached out and felt one of the cold rocks. He knows where he is, the Dark Forest. It can't be true. He is not in the Dark Forest! The Lady of the Lake got him out and sent him to the past to prevent this fate._

_He stood up and at every turn he looks he is in the Dark Forest, alone. Why is he still here?_

_"Because you never left, Hanthur." A familiar haunting voice answers his thought._

_His whole body froze in hearing_

_that voice. It was Merlin's voice, but not the past Merlin's voice. It was the voice of his Merlin, _his_ mother._

_He turns to the voice and his eyes widen in fear. Before him is a pile of dead bodies. Not just any dead bodies but the bodies of the people he knows that have died for him. They are all bleeding and staring at him with their dead eyes as they are gasping eerie breaths out and twitching as if they are still struggling to be alive._

_"You were always a disappointment." He felt a cold breath on his neck as his Merlin's voice said this._

_He twisted around with a jolt and his eyes widened with guilt as he laid eyes on the man who give birth to him. "Mom," he said brokenly. Tears are glistening behind his long dark lashes but he wills himself not let it fall._

_Merlin had his head down. His long dark wavy hair is casting shadows over his pale ghostly face. He was wearing the same blue robe that he wore when he died. The hole where the sword plundered into his heart was there and it's bleeding out as maggots are crawling out. "You were always so weak," his voice said but his lips were not moving. "Always letting me down."_

_Hanthur grinds his teeth together painfully at the harsh comment. "It's not true. I am strong."_

"_You are the reason we are all dead!" Merlin screamed and he looked at Hanthur with his faded dead eyes with nothing but hatred._

_Hanthur can feel hot tears trailing down and he makes no effort to stop it this time. He deserves this-he deserves this pain. He failed. He has let everyone die. He is alone. Alone in this dark forest._

_"You should have never been born."_

* * *

"Hey! Hey! Wake up!" A strong hand shook him out from his slumber.

Hanthur inhales sharply as he jolts awake. His eyes meet another familiar blue ones before he notices that itis Arthur who has awakened him. He looks at his surroundings, afraid that he is still dreaming but then he sees the male version of Evelyn sleeping near the fire while Leon is still fast asleep with his back laying against a tree.

That's right. He is not in the Dark Forest. He is in the Broceliande forest. They left camp a day ago to go to the Fyrien castle to save Merlin. They have been walking for a whole day and made camp for the night. The sun was no longer up but the sunlight still held an overcast of an orange light over the sky.

"Are you all right?" Arthur asked, bringing Hanthur's attention back to him. His hand is still on Hanthur's shoulder with a concerned look on his face.

The gesture seems to comfort the boy allowing him realize that whatever it is that he is dreaming about is just a nightmare. When Hanthur gives Arthur a nod to assure he is well, Arthur finally lets go and headsback to where he was sitting before, which is barely a foot from where the boy is resting.

Hanthur sat up, rubbing his tiring eyes and asked, "How long have I been asleep?"

"Barely an hour."

He groaned.

"You can go back to sleep, you know." The prince said.

Hanthur wanted to but he was too afraid he might revisit the same nightmare.

Arthur watched Hanthur out of the corner of his eyes and he could tell that the boy was still spooked out from the nightmare. Arthur knows he is good at a lot of things but comforting someone is _not_ one of them. However, the scared look on the boy's face really bothered him so he had to ask. "So do you want to talk about it?" He tried to sound conversational as he awkwardly busied his hands poking at the fire.

Hanthur wasn't sure if _Arthur _was the right person to talk to about his nightmares to. Not only a few hours ago, were they exchanging heated words back at the camp and now they were going to have a heart to heartdiscussion? No, he would not speak of his nightmare to the man who would later become his father. They are so different in so many ways aside from their looks. He shook his head. "Nah, it was just a nightmare. Nothing important." he said.

Arthur lets it go for the moment. Another few minutes pass and Hanthur hasn't said a word to him, as if he was ignoring him but the same haunted look on his face remained. "Are you sure your okay?" he asked.

Hanthur nods but he knows he is not okay,_ not at all_, but the last thing he wants to do now is to talk about it. He has been keeping silent about his past ever since he traveled to the past. He hadn't had _that_nightmare since he came here. _Why now? Is it because Merlin has been kidnapped? Is it because he is afraid he won't be able to save his mother again?_

Arthur would normally not pry into another man's business but he could not just sit back and ignore how upset the boy was either. He knows Hanthur is probably still angry about their heated disagreement back at the camp. He doesn't understand why they are so alike but yet still so different. They both inherited great looks and have great skills of many things but they still manage to butt heads whenever they speak to each other.

He huffed and decided to be the bigger person here and end their uncomfortable silence. Hanthur is a great candidate to become a knight and its better to get along now than later. But knowing Hanthur's character, he wouldn't speak unless Arthur shared something about himself first. Hopefully that will prompt Hanthur to speak freely in return.

"When I was thirteen, my father gave me my first mission," he started and glanced over to the boy to see if he got his attention and he did. He looked as if he didn't understand why Arthur was telling him this but he didn't say anything either which was a good sign. Arthur continued, "He sent me to invade a village where a lot of the Druids were living.

At first, I was determined to prove myself as worthy to my father." His shoulders slumped down as if the weight of the world was suddenly on his shoulders. He threw the wooden stick he was holding into the fire and continued, "When I got there, I ordered the knights to spare the women and children and the humans but as they attacked…in the middle of it, the knights lost sight of right from wrong. I also lost control of them because to them I was just a kid so…they killed _everyone_, including the humans." He exhaled through his nose and looked away.

Hanthur kept silent as he finally realized maybe he and his father had more things in common than he thought.

His silence made Arthur think he wasn't going to say anything in response. Arthur sighed in disappointment but at least he knew that he tried.

Hanthur took a few deep breaths. "I saw a lot of people die." He could feel tears forming and worried that he might cry.

Arthur gazed up to meet Hanthur's glossy blue eyes. He remembered the boy told him about the deaths of his uncles during the hunt. He realizes now that the boy did not have a nightmare but was instead reliving a memory. Arthur could relate to that. He still wakes up shaking from the memories of his kills during the great purge. It was never a comforting memory. "I'm sorry you have to go through something like that."

"Does it still haunt you?" he asked. "The dead."

The prince nods. "Every day of my life."

"How do you deal with it?"

A small smile graced Arthur's lips. "When I am king, things will be different," he promised. "I won't let my people die."

Hanthur finally smiled, as he knows he could relate to that. He won't let his family die _again_. He will protect them this time. "So when is it my time to take over watch?" he asked.

"Not for another few hours so get some shut eye," Arthur said.

The boy nodded and laid back down on the ground. "Arthur," he said and Arthur makes a sound like a hum. "Thank you."

Arthur didn't say anything but Hanthur knows his father is smiling. Then he closes his eyes and his dream is more pleasant this time.

* * *

"I don't think you should be going with me." Said Percival as they were packing more food supplies into her traveling leather bag.

She shook her head. "I'm not leaving my brother to rot out there." She said.

"You do know that he might already be dead." He said. He doesn't feel good saying that so bluntly to her but he knows that she should at least expect the alternative outcome from this situation.

She stopped packing and her face-hardened at his comment. She knows Elyan might be dead but still, it is not a good enough reason for her to stop searching. He is the only family she has left. "Then I will bring his body back and give him a proper burial." She turns to him. "He is a hero and he will be buried as one."

He grinned at her and continued packing. "You and your brother are so alike," He said earning a smile from her. "Okay, fine, I will take you along with me but if you slow me down, I will leave you behind." He swung his supply bag over his shoulder and started for the door.

She quickly packs the rest of her supplies and runs after the tall ranger. "I won't slow you down." She said confidently.

After a few hours of walking, Gwen still doesn't know where exactly they are heading. All she could seewas trees and more trees but no passageway or road anywhere. "Are you sure you know where you are going?" Asked Gwen. The ranger was walking ahead of her since he had longer legs but he walked slower so she wouldn't be so far behind.

Percival huffed. "The fastest way to Castle Fyrien is through the Bildungsroman Forest. So yes, I am sure I am going the right way." He answered.

She blinked, puzzled. "Isn't that forest dangerous?" She said baffled. "I mean it's filled with shape-shifters, and—and other dangerous creatures!"

"Yes, but don't you want to save your brother?" He asked.

"Yes—" She stopped as he turned to face her.

"Then stop complaining and just keep walking!" He said in a cruel tone before turning away from her.

Gwen frowned for a second because there was something that didn't make any sense here. She knows that her brother saved Percival's life from the evil king but why would he go into the Bildungsroman Forest—the most dangerous forest of all—to rescue Elyan? It is true that the Bildungsroman Forest is the fastest way to the Fyrien Castle but there are other ways too. Then she quickly replaced her frown with a smile as she came to one conclusion. "So how did you meet my brother?" She asked.

He stared at her suspiciously before answering, "I already told you."

She nods. "He saved you, yeah, I remember," She said. "But, you are going to the Bildungsroman Forest. Why would you risk your life to go there when we can take another route?"

"I just want to find him alive, okay?"

"I know," She said, nearly shouted. "Heis _my _brother. You don't think I want that too?! But going into that forest—we don't even know what we are going up against. Wouldn't it be safer if we took another route so that we could be alive _long _enough to save him?"

He tsked and glared down at her but she only glared sternly back at him. She could see he was hiding something behind those steel gray eyes and she knows _those_ eyes; desperation and worry. She saw _those_eyes before from Arthur or Merlin when they thought they lost the other somewhere. "My brother means a lot to you, doesn't he?" She said with shocking realization herself.

He looked away. "Its none of your business," He said and turned away.

As she stood there for a few moment, the insecure feeling she has been having of late about Arthur and Merlin's relationship started surfacing again. It is not like she never thought about it before. Merlin and Arthur's relationship has always been a puzzle to her. Whenever she thought, maybe Arthur's affections for her were an illusion and that he was really in love with his manservant instead, Arthur pulled her back into his arms and took all of those insecurities away. She never asked Arthur but now she wondered if it was a mistake for not doing so.

* * *

Morgause walked through the dark corridor with her long robe trailing behind her. She wasn't expecting Mordred to visit her so soon. Everything was going according to plan so why was he here now? Did she do something wrong? _No, impossible! _She thought. But as she finally stood in front of the door to the room where the Dark Wizard was, her heart began to beat rapidly and her bones shivered with great fear. It took her a few seconds to gather all of her courage to grab the door knob and turn it.

Mordred wasn't in his usual dark clothes nor did he have half of his face covered with the hood of his cape. He was wearing the armor of a knight. His soft and dark curly hair fell gracefully over his large blue eyes. His skin, so pale, as if he never saw the sun before.

"My lord," she said, trying to hide her surprise at his choice of clothing but failed misery. "Has something happened?"

Mordred remained placid as usual. "No, nothing is wrong," He said and moved gracefully towards her. She flinched a little, she wasn't sure of his intention. He smiled bemusedly. "Oh, my dear little priestess, are you afraid of me?"

Her lips tightened but she did not answer; too afraid that it might be a trick question.

He turned away and she huffed out the breath she was holding. "I want you to release the Manticore."

Her eyes widened in horror. "What? Why?"

"It has its own purpose."

"But the Manticore will go straight to Uther. We still need him alive, don't we?"

His eyes flashed gold with anger and her whole body is frozen where she stands. She could feel all of the air squeezing out from her lungs and all of her muscles tightening up. Her jaw stretched and her eyes rolledto the back as she felt the grip of the force tighten. "Pleas…forgive me." She choked out but the force only tightened. As she thought he was going to kill her, the force vanished and she fell to the ground. She inhaled deeply a couple of times as Mordred knelt down before her and cupped her face.

"Do not ever question me," He hissed. He let her go as he stood up again. "Tell the Manticore to seek out Arthur Pendragon." Without any explanation, he just opened the door and left the scared witch there, tryingto gather her thoughts.

Two minutes after the young dark wizard left, two Essetir knights rushed in to see if she was okay but outof anger her eyes flashed gold and the two knights flew up in midair. Her hand clenched and their neckswere dislocated. She swung her arm and the two dead knights flew out of the room and the door slammedclosed. She groaned angrily as she tried to stand up but slumped back down, her legs not being able tosupport her.

She hated him. She hated Mordred with all of her dark heart but she could not go up against him. His power was great, greater than hers but she knows one thing. He will not kill her. She was his only connection to Morgana and he needs her sister in order to win this coming war.

* * *

When Hanthur woke up for the second time it was really dark. If it were not for the fire he would not be able to see anything. Arthur was now sleeping and Leon up and on watch, but he was not alone. The male version of Evelyn was keeping the knight company. Though it seemed both of them did not realize that hehad woken up.

"So you and Hanthur are not together?" Leon asked and Hanthur frowned at the question.

Evelyn—or Evan at the moment—laughed heartily and shook his head. "No, we were having a disagreement on some subject and he attacked me." The manservant said.

Leon frowned. "Hanthur doesn't seem the type to attack whenever he has a disagreement."

"Trust me. That boy has a mean temper." Evan said and Hanthur rolled his eyes at the mermaid's comment. "But he has a good heart though." The future prince glanced up at Evan and he could see the mermaid was being sincere.

"I know he does," Said the knight.

"But still, temper." He reminds him and they have a great laugh. "What about you? Why did you become a knight?"

Leon shrugged. "Well, my father fought along side with the king for years before he retired. Growing up, I always wanted to follow his footsteps so that is why I became a knight. What about you? What is your family like?"

Evan's lips thinned as he tried to find the right words to describe his family without revealing his magic. "Well, I lost my father, he was a good man. He was always very good with a sword, taught me even, but that was a long time ago."

"You don't know how to use a sword anymore?" He asked.

Evan shook his head. "He died when I was eight years old," He said. "After that, I couldn't pick up a sword even if I wanted to."

Leon frowned deeply. "I'm sorry."

The manservant simply smiled, although it did not quite reach his eyes. "Well, I'm still good with other things. I don't have to be a warrior. It is the reason why I came to Camelot, to find my uncle Alton. Of course, my mother disagreed but hey, I got to leave the nest and fly on my own."

Leon patted him on the shoulder. "Yeah."

Evan shrugged it off but both Hanthur and Leon could see that the manservant was actually sad about it. "And hey, I'm here and alive and on one of the greatest journeys with the prince and his two knights. I mean come on, it can't get any better than this, right?"

"Damn right!" Said Hanthur startling them both.

"Hanthur, when did you-?"

"Just now," He lied and stretched his arms. He could see how uncomfortable Evan was now seeing him awake. "Is it my time to take watch yet?" He asked.

"No watch for you, young man," Said Leon and Hanthur gave him confused look.

"What?"

"Prince Arthur said you were having trouble sleeping and to let you sleep some more." He explained as the younger man came to join them by the fire. "It will be a few more hour before dawn. Go back to sleep."

Hanthur stared at Evan who looked away almost awkwardly. "Why? You want some alone time with the manservant?"

Leon laughed. "No, of course not," He said, almost jittery which raised some questions on both of Hanthur and Evan's side. "I'm going to get more water." He stood up and left.

When the knight was long gone and he sees for sure Arthur is sleeping, he turned to the mermaid with stern eyes. "What are your intentions here? To make him fall in love with the male you?"

Evan frowned. "Of course not! When the Camelot prince woke Leon up, Leon woke me up to keep him company. What could I do? Refuse?"

"Yes," Hanthur said, as if stating the obvious. "Okay, if he falls in love with you in your female form andtakes your clothes off he won't have to find you a man. But if he falls in love with you in your male formand takes your clothes off finding you a female? Just what do you think he will do to you?"

Evan grimaced at the image. "I can take care of myself so stop nagging at me like my mother," He huffed and stood up. "Besides, are we going to talk about it?"

He gave the manservant a confused stare. "Talk about what?"

"Your sexual orientation?"

Hanthur frowned. "I don't think that is any of your business."

"Right and mine is," He spat. "Look, you don't like girls."

"How do you know that?"

"Oh come on, you future prat! You obviously like men. I saw how you looked at Leon, heck, I even saw how you looked at all of the other knights!" He said, spreading his arms wide trying to make his point.

Hanthur considered him for a moment, frowning deeply. "I am not in love with Leon." He said calmly.

Evan crossed his arms. "No, you are not but you are obviously turned on by guys."

"What? You're crazy! That is not true!"

Evan rolled his eyes. "Okay, so when you are in the future you didn't have time to find out things like your sexual orientation, or your favorite food, or—"

"I don't have time for that kind of nonsense!" He interrupted, his eyes tensed and his jaw clenched.

Evan glared at the future prince. "It doesn't have to be like this, Hanthur. Whatever you are doing, you don't have to carry all of the weight."

"How would you understand? All you do is run around taking everything as a joke."

"Enough!" Evan shouted but stopped and looked at prince Arthur, still dead asleep—making him wonder, before continuing. "My mother and I..." he paused and swept his small and thin fingers through his currently short blond hair. "My grandfather—the eel merman—put an ancient enchantment on us when Prince Gunthur became king. We were to never age until we found our true love; someone who couldprotect us. A kiss would break the spell."

"Let me guess, Leon kissed you?"

Evan looked at him sadly. "Five hundred years, Hanthur. It took five hundred years to find my true love. Do you know what its like to be immortal? For three hundred years, I watched all of my friends die one after the other. I stopped making friends after those three hundred years. I didn't see a point of making them when I had to watch them die."

As Hanthur gazed to look at the mermaid, he realized he was crying. He sighed, hating himself for being cruel to him all of this time. Sitting up, he walked over to him and put his arm around him. Evan was surprised but he ignored it with a blush. "I guess we have something in common after all, little mermaid."He said.

It wasn't much but Evan smiled and that was all Hanthur cared about.

An odd movement stirred Arthur from his sleep and his eyes fluttered open and looked around. He saw Hanthur putting his arm around the manservant who came along with them but that was not why the prince woke up. Something was coming. Something big. He quickly sat up and both the boy and the manservant noticed the prince's present state. "Where is Leon?" He asked before they could question him.

"He went to get water." Evan answered.

"Get your weapon." He ordered Hanthur and the boy did as he was told as Evan went to get Leon's sword.

"What's going on?" Hanthur asked but before Arthur could even answer, he felt the ground shaking.

"Something big is coming." Evan said, but he couldn't understand why he didn't sense it before. Then as the ground shook even more, he realized that magic was being used to cover the presence of whatever beastwas coming their way. He turned to Hanthur. "It's a Manticore." No sooner than he said it, a large creature with a lion body, a scorpion tail, and a human head came crashing through large thick trees roaring loudly throughout the forest.

All of their eyes widened in fear, knowing they did not stand a chance against this beast. "Run!" Arthur shouted and all of them started to run just as the Manticore came charging after them, growling.

Tall trees crashed down around them and at some point in the mist of chaos, Evan disappeared from their sight. In panic, Arthur grabbed Hanthur's shirt and pulled him towards where he was heading just as another tree came crashing down. He didn't want to lose sight of another comrade. Although, it seemed the Manticore was only chasing after Arthur and Hanthur.

"Why is it only following us?" Hanthur shouted after the chase went on for a good ten minutes nonstop.

"I don't know! But keep running!" Arthur shouted back. He did not know how much longer they couldkeep running. Its not like a regular straight run either. Both of them had to jump over rocks and run up and down hills. Their lungs burned painfully and they could hear their hearts pumping rapidly against their chests and ears.

Suddenly out of nowhere, a blue sparkling light flashes pass them hitting the Manticore across the face. Both the prince and boy stop at the surprise attack. Hanthur looked toward where it came from and he saw Evan—no Evelyn—but she was in her mermaid form. She quickly disappeared before Arthur turned his head to see who had helped them but the Manticore roared again—sounding angrier this time. Both of them exchanged looks before starting to run again.

After another ten minutes of running, both of them finally stopped to take a breath.

"Did you see it?" Arthur puffed out.

Hanthur was on the ground, panting and sweaty, all worn out from the run. He knows what the prince is asking but he is not going to tell him what he saw. "The magic blast that saved both of our asses, yes, I saw that." He answered, closing his eyes.

Arthur finally gives in and slumps to the ground next to the younger boy. "Did…did you see who shot it?" He couldn't see Hanthur but he could tell the boy shook his head.

Both of them didn't say a word, just taking their time catching their breaths as they looked at the sunlight peeking up in the sky. Then Arthur noticed something odd about their surroundings. The trees had leaves but it was a glowing silvery white color. He slowly sat up and really studied the place they stumbled upon. "Hanthur." He said, patting the boy, prompting him to open his eyes.

As Hanthur did, his jaw opens in awe, identical to his father's. The place was beautiful. Enormous light brown tree branch with silvery white leaves and smoke tree with green vines curling around the trunk grew thickly everywhere. Beautiful sedum, moss, and small plants rose here and there—all around the exposed roots and stones. There is no path but Arthur and Hanthur walked deeper into the mass of trees and wonder. They passed a small pond full of some lovely koi fishes, many different kinds of flowers growing with patches of green grass. The air smell fresh and was scented with flowers' fragrance. There is so many dandelion seeds floating around with the wind and as the sunlight crept through the cracks of the branches above them, make the place look even more stunning.

"Where are we?" Asked Hanthur, awestruck.

Arthur wasn't so sure. Of all of the places he has been to, he knows that he has never been here before. Then something clicked. A place he has never been too before must mean… "We are in the Bildungsroman forest."

Hanthur never heard of such a forest before but before he could ask, he heard growling from behind them. As they looked up they realized that there were large werewolves surrounding them.

Arthur moved back until he was standing back to back with Hanthur. Both of them had their swords unsheathed holding it before them defensively as more then ten werewolves surrounded them. Their eyes glowed gold and their lips gnashing, showing their sharp teeth. The prince wasn't sure if he and Hanthurwere going to make it out of the Bildungsroman forest alive. It is not that he was afraid to die. Arthur hasbeen in too many battles during the Great Purge but he has never fought with werewolves. Werewolves were supposedly died out way before he could even pick up a sword.

He turned to the younger man and for a moment they shared the same thought and gave each other an understanding nod before running toward their deaths.

* * *

Evelyn's tail faded away and her legs returned to her after she had to wait a long time for it to dry. She knows that the Camelot prince and the time-traveling prat went into the Bildungsroman Forest, but she is unable to follow them—not in her mermaid form. So she found a safe spot and dried her legs beforeventuring to look for _Leon_. Then she could go and find those two prats!

Just as she was putting her clothes on, she heard Leon's voice calling for them. "That idiot!" She groans putting her clothes on at a faster pace while turning into her male version—Evan. She picked up the swords and supply bags and rushed towards Leon's voice. When she—he found the knight, he looked very lost, frightened, and confused as he continued calling for his prince.

He sensed the Manticore was coming his way. Quickly, he ran to the knight and the knight look relieved to see him but Evan tackled him down to the ground. He whispered a barrier spell and hoped for the best that Leon didn't hear him. He was about to speak when the beast showed up silencing them both.

The Manticore sniffed around and growled a little bit but when it didn't get anything, it left.

Evan sighed in relief and finally turned to his beloved knight.

"Is that a Manticore?" Leon asked.

The manservant nodded and both of them got up from the ground.

"Where is the prince and Hanthur?" He asked.

"They are in the Bildungsroman Forest."

"The Bildungsroman forest!" He shouted but Evan quickly covered his mouth and glared at the knight angrily.

"Yes, the Bildungsroman forest," He repeated and slowly took his hand off the blonde's mouth. "So, come on, we have to find them before other predators do. And trust me, there are creatures that are far worsethan the Manticore living there." He handed Leon his sword and started walking toward the direction he last saw the two prats with Leon trailing behind him.

* * *

The castle of Lord Walter was silent. There were no living souls existing in this castle—not for over five months now. The family, the villagers, the servants and maids, and the knights were long gone. _And_Camelot did not know that one of their Lords, who was a retired loyal knight from Uther's reign, was killed along with everyone months ago. But, just because their bodies were without a soul did not mean that their bodies could not be made to respond.

Mordred had attacked Lord Walter's land and made everyone drink their own blood from the Cup of Life. Soulless as they may be, but still useful to the dark wizard's advantage.

When Mordred entered, they greeted him as the son of Lord Walter—who was the only one Mordred killed and disposed of—and treated him well. Even Lord Walter and his wife, Ginger, treated him as if he weretheir real son.

"My son," Lord Walter said giving him a hug. It was cold and lacked affection but Mordred didn't seem to care. "Did you accomplish what you worked so hard for yet?"

Mordred only smiled icily. "Not yet, father," he said, playing along as he walked his _parent_ toward the throne room. "But soon, I will."

"What is your plan, dear?" Lady Ginger asked in her gentle motherly tone.

"I released the Manticore after Prince Arthur," He answered and the parent seemed to be of interest. "And I will take two hundred knights to go and rescue him. Hopefully then, I will gain his trust and become one of his knights."

"That sound like a perfect idea, Wallace." Said Ginger.

Mordred's brows furrows in anger. "My name is Mordred!" He roared. The Lord and his wife had no soul, but they still seemed to carry fear in their soulless bodies some how.

Lady Ginger backs away in fear. "I'm sorry, Mordred. I don't know why I called you that." She apologized.

Mordred huffed calmly working his jaw. "It's okay, dear mother. Just. Don't. Do it again," He said calmly. "Now, get two hundred knights ready. We are moving out to the Bildungsroman Forest in the morning."

"Yes, son." The parents said in a unison and bowed down as they walked away from the throne room.

Mordred walked up the mini stairs and sat on the throne. He inhaled deeply and closed his eyes. "Soon, father, soon we will take over and Camelot will pay for their sins." He promised.

* * *

**A/N:** Okay, I KNOW I KNOW...Mordred's character is OOC but I really really really wanted him to be really really really evil. And yeah, Precival have feelings for Elyan but does Elyan feel the same way? We will have to wait and find out. Plus, the next chapter, it's going to be a mixture of everyone instead just doing _this_ group of people and _that_ group of people. And yeah, yeah, I know the Merthur's family got separated too long but hey, I got to get this part over with so we can move on to the good part. After one more chapter of their separation, they will be reunited again...well most of them...Yep.

**OKAY SO REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! XD**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N:** Yes, this is a very long chapter. Okay. I'm going to say I was hoping to bring the Merthur family back together in this chapter but it become too long so I decide to split it into two chapters. I haven't finish the other half but I'm hoping to finish by the end of this week. Plus, school is over so I'm hoping to post a new chapter every week now. And for those who read my other story "I will still love you tomorrow", good news, I'm continuing that story as well. I never intend to stop writing it bc I love that story so much and I have big plan for that story. It's just that school have taken so much of my time that I have to put a pause button on that story. Anyways, I want to **specially thank my beta, kenya1234! She was really sick but she still manage to finish editing my story. For that, I'm very grateful for her. And I want to say thanks to all my reviewers! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! I promise you more Merthur soon! **

* * *

Chapter 14

Merlin woke up before the rise of the sun. It was not that he was unable to sleep or that he was having nightmares. It was not even because the floor was too hard. It was because he felt movement coming from his stomach. He never thought he would have felt stirring coming from the baby yet. It had only been about two weeks since he and Arthur slept together. _'Why was there movement from the baby already?'_

He sat up and walked towards the nearby creek to wash his face. Again, he felt the baby move inside of him. He lifted up his tunic and looked at his once flat stomach thinking, _"When did my stomach start to grow?"_ Merlin laid his hand on his stomach and then he felt a kick. A smile graced his lips. He continued in his thoughts until it was interrupted by someone approaching.

"So, how far along are you?" Merlin nearly jumped to the voice of Gwaine.

"What?" He said in response, trying to hide his surprise as their tour guide squatted down to washes his face.

Gwaine pointed to the wizard's stomach. "You are pregnant, right?"

"How did you know?"

Gwaine shrugged. "Travel with magic long enough and you will eventually start to notice things. A male pregnancy isn't something new to me. I noticed it the first time I laid eyes on you." He replied. "_So_, how far along are you?"

Merlin shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe two weeks." He said.

Then Gwaine looked to the skies and squinted his eyes in calculated thought before responding. "About two and a half months then."

"What?"

"Surely you do know that a male pregnancy is different from a female one?" Gwaine stated, more like a question but was surprised when he realized that his new wizard friend did in fact _not _know that. "You didn't know?"

Merlin avoided making eye contact with Gwaine, feeling a little embarrassed by his own lack of knowledge about magic.

"Interesting." Gwaine said. "Well, I will tell you this then. I assume that you are a human wizard so your male pregnancy will go by faster than a regular females' pregnancy. One month in a woman's time will be like three months in a man's. So therefore, you will go into labor in three months—well, for you it will be two and half months."

"So that's why I am starting to show already? But the Lycan was pregnant for months now and he hasn't gone into labor." Merlin questioned.

"A Lycan is different. It takes a year for a Lycan to go into labor, plus they are not having only one child. They always have more than one." Gwaine answered before adding. "Though every species is different."

Merlin wanted to ask more questions but he stopped as he heard Lancelot yawning. They looked up and saw the wanderer coming their way—stretching his arms as he walked over with the sleepy warrior mouse sitting on his shoulder.

"Morning, gents." Matthias greeted jumping down from Lancelot's shoulder as the wanderer squatted down to wash his face.

"Morning." Merlin responded in greeting.

Gwaine sighed. "All right, now that we are all up I am going to explain how a journey to the Perilous Land works." He picked up a stick from the ground and started drawing three rings of circles in the dirt before continuing. "The reason why it is so hard to get to the Perilous Land is because the Perilous land is at the center of seven different lands. The different lands are what you would consider a barrier of the Perilous Land."

Gwaine continued as he pointed to the core of the three rings of circles. "The seven different lands circling the Perilous Land are like the layers of an onion, except that there are only two layers. The first layer," pointing to the outer ring of circle. "Has four lands and they will shift every three hours. Meanwhile the second layer," Moving the stick to point to the inner layer. "Has three lands and they will shift even faster—every one and a half hours. Each lands holds different levels of magic, different creatures, and different landscapes. It could be freezing, hot, wet, or dry. If we are lucky, we will only have to travel to two lands but if we are not, we could land on more lands or worse. Well you may not want to know what the worse case scenario would mean."

Merlin and Lancelot looked at Gwaine giving him the same questioning stare.

He grimaced. "Questions?"

"Yeah." Merlin started first. "It sounds like we may only have to travel into two lands. I don't see why we would have to venture through another land."

The wanderer nodded in agreement.

Gwaine frowned. "Okay, sorry, maybe I didn't make myself clear." Gwaine said while bringing his hands together and up to his mouth as he tried to think of the easiest way to explain. "Okay." He started as he finally thought of a way to explain. "So you all know about the theory of our solar system, right?" He asked, receiving nods in understanding before continuing. "Okay, well then imagine that the Perilous Land is like the sun and the seven lands are like the planets. Each land orbits around the Perilous land and _like the planets_, it _turns_. Which means, if we do not get to the inner layer in time, the outer land will turn forcing us back to where we started. We could either land on another outer land or—if we are lucky—we might land on another inner land though that would be unlikely to happen."

"So how will we know if we end up on an inner land?" Lancelot asked.

"The inner lands are usually hot and dry while the outer lands are cold and wet."

"But you are not certain?" Asked the warrior mouse.

Gwaine nodded in response agreeing with the warrior mouse. "No, but I have been to two different outer lands, all three inner lands, _and_ has successfully entered into the Perilous Land _three_ times."

Lancelot looked to his wizard friend. He was still quite worried about him and his unborn child. "How will we get back? Will it be the same way?"

Gwaine shook his head disagreeing. "Inside the Castle of the Fisher King, there is a portal. The portal will lead us out to the Bildungsroman Forest."

"Isn't the Bildungsroman Forest dangerous?"

Gwaine laughed, crossing his arms as if the question was definitely a stupid one before responding. "My dear travelers, after you've been to one of these seven lands, the Bildungsroman Forest will be a paradise."

Merlin inhaled and stood up having enough. "Then what are we waiting for?"

* * *

Hanthur backed up until he was back to back to Arthur. There were more than ten large werewolves surrounding them with hungry to kill eyes glaring down at them growling through snarling lips. He didn't know how they were going to get out of this one. Even if they did somehow survive, there was no doubt they would either have gotten bitten or scratched. As he and Arthur stared, he just knew that they were not going to make it.

He gave the man who will later become his father a nod, as though he was letting him know that the outcome from this will end with death no matter what. But at least, they would be going to their deaths fighting.

When they charged towards the werewolves, all ten came at them at the same time. Arthur concentrated on the one that came at him first and stabbed it with his sword made of silver into its heart just like Gaius had told him to do. He made sure the stab wound was deep enough to end its life rather than maim it. The next nearest werewolf was to his right. He easily dodged its claw from attempting to scratch him and pulled his sword from the dead werewolf and swing at the second werewolf's belly. The cut was deep and its intestines spilled out but it was not enough to kill it. The werewolf whimpered and retreated back as another three came yapping protectively of the injured one. Arthur let out a cry similar to the one he used in battle and charged at the werewolves.

Hanthur killed one werewolf at the first charge very much like how his father did, a stab to the heart. Then as he saw three more charging at him, he leaped up into the air as high as he could go and dodged one of the charging three werewolves while landing on the back of the second one. As soon as the werewolf noticed his presence, it started to thrash around to throw him off. Hanthur raised his silver sword up and stabbed the back of its neck ripping down its spine. The werewolf's limp body crashed into a large boulder sending him flying into the pond with the lovely koi fishes.

Arthur stabbed the last werewolf he was fighting in the heart and turned to find two werewolves hounding the pond with the koi fish that he and Hanthur passed by a while ago. Then he saw Hanthur surfacing from the water and gasping for air. "That idiot!" He started, and ran towards the pond; his mind was foggy with worry when he heard pounding footsteps from behind him.

"Arthur! Look out!" Hanthur shouted before one of the two werewolves decided to dive into the water to get him.

Arthur turned in time to grasp the werewolf's snapping jaw as it pinned him down. His sword dropped to his side. He wanted to reach for it but the werewolf's jaw was too powerful. One arm could not hold it while the other tried to reach for the sword. The werewolf backed up a little loosing Arthur's grasp before charging again. This time Arthur couldn't hold it. The werewolf bit into his shoulder and Arthur let out a scream in agony as teeth hacked deeply into his raw flesh.

"NO!" Hanthur yelled as he saw his father had gotten bitten, he roared loudly and angrily as he stabbed the werewolf who attacked him in the water. He quickly got out of the water only to be pounced by the other werewolf he had forgotten about and his sword slipped from his hand. One of the werewolf's giant paws was about to smash down across his face and he thought this was it. He was going to be wolf chow here in this estranged forest but the pain never came. He looked up and saw a confused look on the angry werewolf. It brought its paw back down on him but for some unknown reason the paw would not lay a scratch on him. He took this an open opportunity and reached out for his sword plunging it into its heart but the werewolf would not die. It was still snapping its jaw at him.

Seeing Hanthur pinned to the ground by another werewolf, the prince quickly grabbed his sword and stuck it into the stomach of the werewolf he was fighting and pulled it up to its rib killing it with a snarl of his own.

Blood was rushing down his shoulder and the pain was excruciating but he had to save Hanthur. If he was to die, he trusts Hanthur could and would finish the rescue mission. Just as the last werewolf was about to take a bite out of the younger man, Arthur swung his sword cutting off its head. The body of the hairy beast fell to the side as Arthur knelt down to the boy. "Are you all right?" He asked.

Hanthur huffed in relief as he nodded, taking his sword out from the werewolf's body. As he sat up, he saw blood trailing down his father's shoulder. "You are hurt." He said, gripping the prince's good shoulder and quickly sitting up to take a closer look at the wounds.

"Well according to Gaius, I won't turn unless it's the full moon, right?" Arthur said trying to laugh but regrets it as soon as the pain floods through his body.

Hanthur grounded his teeth together, painfully. How could he let this happen?! He promised not to let any of his loved ones die or get hurt but here he is—he couldn't even protect his own father. He furrowed angrily at himself but then realized something else and turned to look at the werewolves as he stood up. "Of course, I am such an _idiot!_" He muses, slapping a hand over his forehead as he finally sees it.

Arthur stared questionably and painfully at the boy. "What?"

Hanthur turned to him and pointed at the dead werewolves—"These are not werewolves!" he said cheerfully.

"What?" Arthur repeated, obviously confused.

"Werewolves cannot transform in the daylight, Arthur!"

It took a second but Arthur finally caught on letting out a wholehearted relieved laugh but feeling like an idiot just like Hanthur did. "We are both idiots." He said, still laughing. "What the hell are they then?"

Hanthur shrugged.

Arthur tried to get up but winced as the pain ripped through his body and decided against it for now.

Hanthur realized that even though the prince was not going to turn into a wolf that he was still severely injured. He quickly knelt down beside his father and took out his water pouch from his leather supply bag—which he was surprised he didn't lose. Though everything in the bag from the food to the medic supplies were all wet from his journey in the water. He cursed and threw the bag to the side. He then took off his shirt and started to rip it into strips. "Take off your shirt." He ordered the prince as soon as he finished.

Normally, Arthur would not let anyone but Merlin treat his injuries but right now he is so blinded by the pain that he did not have the strength to care. He lifted up his arms carefully as Hanthur helped him takeoff his favorite leather jacket and then his creamed tunic.

Wounds were nothing new to Hanthur. He has seen many injuries before and has even helped the future Gaius tends to some. The bleeding seemed to have stopped on its own leaving only the cleaning and wrapping of the wound itself. After cleaning it, he realized there were deep scratches from the claws on his father's back as well. He would need to sew the raw flesh back together. "I will have sew these." he told Arthur and the prince only nodded in response.

Hanthur took ten minutes to build a small fire and burned the needles to kill all the bacteria before pulling out the clear fish line from the bag in order to sew Arthur's flesh back together.

Every single time the needle went through a sensitive spot Arthur would grunt and his body would shift a bit. "So how did you and Merlin meet?" He asked, trying to distract the prince.

Arthur smiled warmly at the question. "He tried to punch me."

"Really?"

"Yeah but he didn't, of course. He was too bony and weak then."

"So he is not anymore?"

"No, he has more meat now that he works for me."

"So did he ever get a good punch in on you?"

"No, of course not. I can still easily hold him down."

Hanthur laughed and Arthur could only smile. And surprisingly, the pain didn't seem to hurt as much anymore. "Uh Hanthur," Arthur started; trying not to make the moment awkward. "What is Merlin to you?"

For a moment, the boy paused and tried to think of a way to reply. "He is family." He answered.

Arthur just hummed in response.

"What about you?" Hanthur asked. "What is Merlin to you?"

Arthur took a deep breath in silence. Hanthur wasn't sure if the prince was annoyed at the question or if he was still in pain but he hoped he could get Arthur to be more honest about his feelings. "He is everything." He finally admitted to Hanthur's surprise.

"Everything like _everything_?"

Arthur nods, not even sure why he confessed this to the boy. Probably because he has been holding it in for so long or probably because he is in too much pain right now. He just feels as though he needs to tell someone. "The first time we met, I got this feeling but I didn't know what it was because I never felt it before."

"How did you know then?"

"Hanthur, I—" Arthur did not want to talk about it but Hanthur gave him a stern look. He knows the boy is asking him these questions to keep him talking to keep his mind from the pain. He cleared his throat and reluctantly explained, "About three years ago King Bayard from another kingdom came to Camelot to sign a treaty. A sorceress camouflaged herself in with their group and poisoned my drink. Merlin tried to warn me but no one would listen so he took the drink for me. We then found out that he was telling the truth. It was then, when I thought I was going to lose him that I knew how important he was to me."

This was the first time Hanthur ever heard the story of how his parents met. Merlin never spoke of the love between him and his _king. _Hanthur always thought it must have been too painful to talk about his father. "I never met my father before." He said and Arthur looked at him, confused—_how is his Hanthur's father related to this situation?_ "My mother spoke a lot of his greatness but never about the love that they shared. I believe he…I mean, she thinks it will make me weak if I seek such a thing. Even though she never said she loved me, I know that she did."

"Hanthur, I don't get it…"

"What I am trying to say here is that you should tell Merlin how you feel about him." he interrupted. "I mean, though I knew my mom loved me, sometimes it is good to hear it."

Arthur frowned. "It's not always that easy, Hanthur." He said.

Hanthur let out a sigh in relief as he finished sewing the prince up and started to wrapping. "You can trust me, Arthur." He assured and Arthur's eyes met his. "You are telling me this right now for a reason, right? So _tell _me."

The prince sighed. "I _hurt_ him, Hanthur, that is what happened." He ran a hand over his face and through his hair in frustration. Hanthur could see that his father was really in distress. "I didn't do it intentionally. It happened during the hunt a few weeks ago. I know something occurred between us in that hut but I don't_ remember_." He lowered his head down, ashamed. "We _slept _together."

Hanthur closed his eyes in mortification. He knows that his parents had sex due to Evelyn's water pouch but hearing it from one of his parents made it more real. "You said you have feelings for him. Why not just tell him?"

"I am the heir to the throne. I have a duty to my kingdom and to my people. I cannot be with him."

"But don't you love him, Arthur?" Hanthur asked sternly.

Arthur glared at him and willed himself to stop talking, knowing he had already leaked too much information about his personal matters but for days Merlin's unhappy face has been mentally eating him alive, the answer was automatic. "I love him." He admitted.

The boy looks relieved for reasons the prince could not explain. "Then why don't you just tell him?"

"Because I am a prince and my father would never allow it!" He said exasperatedly. "And it will put Merlin's life at risk. I could never ask him to go through that, not for me."

"Arthur, Merlin loves you. He would go along with you to the ends of the world and back again."

"You don't think I know that?! It is the very reason why I'm afraid to be with him because I know that as long as I said so he would be more than happy to come on board with me."

"Then what is the problem?"

"I _am_ Camelot's future king, Hanthur, I will need an heir. No matter how much I wanted to be with Merlin, I can't. And knowing that, it _hurts._" Arthur reminded him reasonably. "Besides, there's Gwen, she's—"

"Wait. Isn't Gwen the maid? I thought it was against the law to marry someone without a standard?"

"I know that but Gwen…"

"Is like Merlin except that she is a girl and she can bare you an heir." Hanthur finished his father's sentence for him with a very disapproving tone.

Arthur doesn't react for a moment as he hears the truth out loud. He was always aware that he didn't really love Gwen, not truly—that she was more of a substitute for Merlin. Ever since the beginning, Gwen and Merlin always had a lot in common and had similar behavior traits. He admitted he never was attracted to Gwen until he realized his desire for Merlin and accepted that he could not have him. So when he noticed the similarities between the two, he chose Gwen.

"Arthur, what you are doing is wrong. You have to be honest with yourself, especially regarding your true feelings. If you keep going like this, it will eventually destroy you. If you really care for Gwen, you have to break it off now. The longer you wait the harder it will get for you. You might even lose them in the process." Hanthur explained firmly. "Just…just put more thought into it, Arthur. I don't think Merlin can handle any more disappointment from you. If you continue like this you will lose him for good." He said warningly.

Arthur considered him for moment, his face frowned a little bit knowing that the boy was right. If he keeps this charade going any longer, he really could lose them both. He knows he must choose one of them, _but whom?_ Arthur raised a hand up and scuffled the boy's hair. "I guess you are right." He said, smiling gratefully at him. "Thank you."

Hanthur found it strange as his father thanked him. His lips were smiling but there was a feeling that he couldn't shake off, what was it? It was not anger or sadness. More like he was _happy_ and _proud_. His eyes were getting glossy. _So this was how it felt to be compliment from your father._ He mentally said to himself.

"So." Arthur said, putting his shirt back on, trying to erase the awkward silence. "You never met your father before?"

The question snapped Hanthur back to reality but he was still smiling proudly. "No, he died when I was born."

"I'm sorry to hear that." The prince said genuinely and got up. The pain in his shoulder was still there but he refused to allow it to stop him. He knows now what to do in his situation with Merlin. _Just wait a little longer, Merlin. I'm coming._ He mentally said to himself before turning back to the dazed boy. "Come on, we have got to find Sir Leon and that servant." He started up the hill and Hanthur quickly packed the supplies that were not too wet and followed along.

As Hanthur watched the Camelot prince's broad shoulders, he noted to himself, _I wouldn't let you die…father._

He stopped as soon as he saw the prince stop. Before he could ask he heard growling. They looked up and saw themselves surrounded by more werewolves—well, creatures that took the form of werewolves—once more but this time there were more—twenty—no maybe even more than that.

* * *

Merlin was a little annoyed with his wanderer friend's behavior. Lancelot would not allow the wizard to help carry anything and he constantly asked Merlin if he was all right. Merlin was pregnant _not_ disabled. The only thing Lancelot allowed Merlin to carry was the warrior mouse on his shoulder, though he didn't mind that part. Matthias was very talkative on the road. He talked about his childhood growing up with the fairies in a hidden village protected by elves. Merlin was surprised to hear about elves. He didn't know that they still existed—well, he didn't know a lot of magical creatures still existed.

Merlin felt regretful for not knowing about the world outside of Camelot. He thought he knew all about magic from the little library Gaius had but there was more—so much more information about magic than he could have imagined out there in the world. From just listening to what Matthias told him, he learned that not all creatures with magic were evil. Plus, some of them did not have magic at all, like Matthias. Merlin realized he did stay in Camelot too long and that even when he hated Uther for executing whoever was suspected of using magic, he himself wasn't much different from the unfair king. Indeed, Merlin did not kill them but he did not do anything to prevent it from happening either and he involuntarily thought all magic was evil. He concluded at the end of his string of thoughts that he was actually ashamed of himself for being born different.

Lancelot noticed the troubled look on his wizard friend's face and asked, _again,_ "Are you all right?"

Even though that was probably the thirtieth time Lancelot asked that question, Merlin was glad in this instance and answered truthfully. "No."

The sound of Merlin's saddened voice stopped Matthias from talking. Gwaine, who was walking ahead, glanced to them over his shoulder but remained quiet.

Lancelot placed a hand on Merlin's shoulder in reassurance before asking imploringly, "Tell me. What's wrong?"

"Everything." He answered calmly. "I just realized how little I know about my own kind when according to the Great Dragon, I am supposed to become this Great Wizard."

"You are, Merlin."

Merlin scoffed. "Don't tell me that when I know I am not!" He snapped. "Since I was away from Camelot and from Arthur, I have learned that I know nothing about magic or my own kind. I did nothing to help Arthur understand about magic—actually, I think I turned him against magic even more—plus, right now I'm pregnant and not knowing what I am suppose to do! As far as I know I am far from being this _Great Wizard_ everyone claims that I am going to become!"

Everyone went silent as their wizard friend took a few deep breaths from his confession.

"Then change." Gwaine said simply when he felt that Merlin was done with his ranting.

"What?"

"Well, you just found out that you hated the way you things were and that it is not what you wanted it to be so make a change. I mean in my own personal opinion, Camelot is not the best place to learn magic. I don't know _why_ you would even think could be was but it was a terrible idea to live there. And, if you felt that the place does not give you what you need to understand your magic and your kind then leave."

"I can't." Merlin said in a quiet voice.

Gwaine rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Why not? Is it because the father of your child lives there?" He asked and when he saw the wizard wince at the question, he realized he had hit a nerve. "I know it is not my place to say but I'm going to anyways. Merlin, you are an idiot and a selfish person. There, I said it."

Lancelot was shocked that this stranger who they hardly knew would say such thing about Merlin. "You have no right to say that to him!" He shouted defensively at the tour guide. "Apologize!"

Gwaine grimaced. "No," He said. "I did not say anything wrong and you know I am telling the truth. From what I hear from Merlin's complaint of how he lacked information of his kind but will not leave Camelot because of the father of this unborn child—which I assume the father does not know about—is a selfish act."

"Then what would you have me do?" Merlin asked.

"That is not up to me to decide, is it." He said but it was not a question. "Deep down in your heart, you know the answer to that question. It all depends on you and if you want to act on it."

"Merlin." Lancelot started but Merlin held up his hand to stop him.

"He is right." He looked at Gwaine gratefully. "I am a selfish person. Like you told me before. Arthur never really appreciated me and I still wanted to get rid of an innocent life for his sake."

"But—"

"I want to keep the child, Lancelot." Merlin said. He looks likes he is going to cry when Lancelot looks up to him. "I don't want to get rid of it."

Lancelot smiled in relief. "Then keep it."

"But what about Hanthur and Camelot?"

Lancelot walked up to his magical friend and grabbed both of his shoulders. "You have done enough for Camelot, Merlin, and if this Hanthur really is the true future heir as he claims to be then he will know how loyal you are to Arthur and his kingdom. But right now Merlin, right now, you need to do some 'me' time, okay?" Merlin nods back, swallowing over the lump in his throat as he tried to hold the tears that were threatening to fall. Lancelot just opened his arms and his wizard friend leaned in for a hug. "I will help you through this, my friend." He promised and with tight squeeze he let Merlin go.

Lancelot looked up to Gwaine gratefully without any word exchange. Gwaine then turned back to the road.

They walked slowly and chatted animatedly for several minutes before coming to a bridge. Merlin immediately noticed the magic surrounding the place. It wasn't dark—it was _pure_. "Where are we?"

Gwaine turned to them, smiling. "The Bridge of Prague," He answered. "It will take us straight to the outer layer lands."

"Ah back so soon, Gwaine." said a voice by the bridge. They all looked up to find a dwarf in front of the bridge. Merlin knew right away that this dwarf was not an ordinary dwarf. Lancelot held his sword out defensively but remained unsheathed.

Gwaine grinned as he knelt down to give the dwarf a hug—though he did not appear to appreciate being held. The rest of the group also seemed a little confused by their tour guide's actions. "Grettir, you look the same," he said and let go of the little man."Everyone this is the Keeper to the Bridge, Grettir. Grettir, this is everyone."

Strangely enough, Grettir only gives all of them a nod but when he looked at Merlin, it was as if he knew everything about him already. "It is an honor to meet the young Emrys," he said gracefully with a bow.

Merlin looked to Matthias and asked, "Does every magical being know who I am?"

"Only the ones with magic." Matthias answered.

Grettir turned to Gwaine. "I know you got lucky three times already but don't you think you're pushing your luck?"

Gwaine shrugged casually. "Not at all, Grettir. I think I've got another twenty more or so of these kind of trips left in me."

Grettir rolled his eyes and moved to the side. "Be careful."

They all nodded and passed through him one by one but when Merlin came by, he grabbed the warlock's arm. Lancelot unsheathed his sword as he saw the dwarf as a threat to Merlin but Grettir's eyes flashed gold and Lancelot's sword turned into a flower. "Don't be alarmed, I am not going to hurt him." Grettir assured the wanderer. Gwaine grabbed Lancelot's arm and shook his head—letting him know that going against the dwarf was not a wise idea. Grettir turned back to the warlock. "The Fisher King waited many years for this day. Do not deny him what he wishes." Merlin didn't understand why the Dwarf would tell him that but he nodded anyway. Grettir let the wizard go and he went straight to Lancelot. Grettir then added, "Remember," Halting the group from walking. "Nothing is as it seems."

The group did not reply to the Dwarf but continued on their way.

They walked for another hour until they met a dead end at the edge of a cliff when Gwaine finally instructed them to stop. "This is it." He said and everyone looked ahead seeing nothing but water.

"I don't get it," said Lancelot. "There is no land."

"Shh." Matthias (on Gwaine's shoulder now) hushed him just before they felt the ground rumble beneath their feet. Everyone with the exception of Gwaine, were awestruck as they witnessed a large piece of land sweep through the body of water, twisting clockwise sliding towards them. Lancelot pulled Merlin back as the moving land came crashing to the cliff where they were standing. Gwaine simply move a little to let the land settle in front of him. He sighed at the view of the outer land they were going to travel for the next three hours though. The land was mountainous made of blue icy rock with hovering thick black clouds. "This is the Land of Ice Giants."

"Ice Giants?" asked Merlin.

Gwaine nodded, visibly seeing the worry in his companions' eyes. "Don't worry. I've been to this land before. As long as we are quiet, the giants won't notice us."

Lancelot huffed. "And if they do?"

"Then we have to take the underground path, which will be longer so let's try not to make any noise, shall we?" He said and as an afterthought asked Merlin. "Merlin, could you cast a warming spell?"

Merlin seemed to be confused by the question.

"You don't know how to cast a warming spell?" Gwaine asked in surprise and Merlin flushed red. "Okay, just do your golden eyes thing and say…" Gwaine said the spell in ancient words and Lancelot couldn't understand but it seemed Merlin did. He repeated what the tour guide said and with his eyes flashing gold, all three of them had a slightly glowing yellow light surrounding them. "Okay, shall we go now?" Gwaine grinned and walked onto the land of ice.

"This land is different from the one we went to the last time," said Matthias. "Last time, it was the land of giant insects."

Merlin and Lancelot exchanged worried looks before following them onto the icy land, not knowing what fate awaited them. Surprisingly, they did not feel cold at all.

* * *

"C'mon!" Arthur pulled Hanthur back to his feet and they started running as the fake werewolves chased after them. They could hear one of the fake werewolves howl and more werewolves joining in. They didn't see a sharp hill and both of them fell down the high hill. As they got to the bottom, Hanthur hit his head on a rock, knocking the daylights out of him. Arthur scattered up onto his feet and was about to run when he noticed the boy was unconscious. "Hanthur!" He shouted but the boy did not move. He looked up panicking as saw the fake werewolves coming fast down the hill, but Arthur could not just leave Hanthur behind. He ran to the boy and throws him over his good shoulder and started running.

Arthur did not know how long he had been running but he had to stop when his left calf muscle started to cramp. He knows that soon he won't able to run carrying Hanthur anymore. As he looked around for any hiding spots he saw a cave ahead and took Hanthur over. Arthur could still hear growling and barking coming from the fake werewolves. They were still somewhere behind him. Arthur tried to get them in as deep as he could but he stopped in his track as he found himself standing on the edge of an empty dark hole. He laid Hanthur down and grabbed a stone dropping it into the hole but there was no sound to signal that it hit the bottom or that there was one. He had no choice, Arthur thinks; he has to leave Hanthur here. He quickly went out and grabbed a few branches and covered Hanthur with it hoping that fake werewolves did not have the same sense of smell as a real werewolf. "If I don't make it," he said to Hanthur, though he wasn't sure if he could heard him but thought he just needed to say it. "Please tell Merlin that I love him."

With a shape inhale, he ran off in the opposite direction, shouting, "HEY! HEY! OVER HERE!" To leer the fake werewolves away from the boy.

As he ran down another hill, one of werewolves barreled into him making him fall forward. He hit the ground hard as the werewolf swiped its head at him, bringing its claws down at him but he kicked out, his boot connecting with its giant head, and it bought him a solid second to escape being pin down. But he did not get far when another one lunged at him and he felt his stitches stretch and open. He grunted and swung his sword and got one of them in the eyes. It whimpered and backed away, but the other was coming. Arthur's eyes widened in disbelief. There were too many of them and they were coming at a very fast pace. Arthur felt almost as if time had stopped. He watched in slow motion as he waited eyes closed in defeat, waiting for the feeling of claws ripping into his skin.

But as he closed his eyes, he saw someone—someone important to him, who had that stupid short dark haircut, edgy but huggable body, brilliant blue eyes, and that goofy smile that always managed to brighten Arthur's gloomy day. _Merlin_. Merlin was held captive and he was probably waiting for Arthur to come and rescue him. He could not die now. He had to save Merlin—the person he cared for most and…_loved_.

He opened his eyes with purpose. _I have to see him no matter what._ He mentally told himself. That was what he needed to give him back his strength; saving the person he loves and has always been in love with. He stood up with his sword tightly gripped in his hand. He would not let Merlin down. He will save Merlin before it is too late.

He glared at the werewolves before lunging toward them but he stopped as an army of arrows came raining down plunging into all of the fake werewolves. Arthur didn't understand what was happening but he could hear the fake werewolves' whimper cowardly around him as they tried to escape.

He looked up the hill to find a woman with long wavy brown hair and glowing golden eyes. Standing behind her was a sickly-looking chocolate-colored man. As the fake werewolves scattered away, the woman finally look down at him—the color gold in her eyes faded and turn to emerald. Arthur held up his sword as the woman approached—knowing that she was a sorceress.

"Stop! Stop where you are!" Arthur demanded, backing up as they come nearer.

As they got closer, the chocolate-colored man recognized the prince. "You are Arthur, Prince Arthur." Said the chocolate-colored man, smiling as he knelt before a confused Arthur.

Arthur looked at them puzzled, but responded. "And you are?"

The woman with the emerald eyes remained the same with her expressionless facade.

"I am Elyan." Answered the chocolate-colored man.

Arthur's eyes widened in surprise as the sickly-looking man told him his name. He never actually met Gwen's brother but she talked about him all the time. "Elyan? You're Gwen's brother, aren't you?"

Elyan smiled brightly, happy that the prince acknowledged his family. "Yes your highness, I am."

"Please, get up. Don't soil your clothes." The prince said politely and Elyan obeyed gladly.

Then Arthur remembered the sorceress was near. He held his sword up to her neck but she remained unmoved. He looked to Elyan. "Is she holding you hostage, Elyan?"

"No," He said. "She was actually helping me."

"Helping you? Don't be absurd! She is a sorceress!"

"With all due respect my prince, she is not evil." Elyan said sternly and looked away as the prince gazed down at him. There was no doubt Arthur's presence before him was intimidating.

He turned his sword towards her. "What have you done to him? Did you put him under a spell, you witch!"

"My name is Nyssa, I am a wooden nymph," she introduced herself, having no intention of hiding herself. "I don't think your silver sword will help you much." She said and with eyes flashing gold, the hilt of the sword burned Arthur's hand making him drop the sword on the ground. "Now, let me." She moved towards the prince, raised one of her hands toward his re-opened shoulder but Arthur fretted away as if she was going to attack him. "It will get infected."

"I am not an idiot. I'm not going to let you put a spell on me." Said Arthur.

Nyssa smirked amusingly. "You are a prince with so little knowledge of magic. Now I understand why Emrys is so weak."

Arthur stared at her, confused. _'Who is Emrys?' _He thought.

Nyssa nods grabbing the prince's shoulder and whispering a quick healing spell before he could pull away. He was shocked to find the pain was no longer in his shoulder. He looked at it and his clothes that were still torn from the bite but there were no wounds or any evidence of a scar.

"How did you-?"

"Magic is not only black, your majesty," She replied but he still looked dubious. "Why are you here? Are you looking for Emrys?"

Again, Arthur did not understand why this wooden nymph kept assuming that he knows someone by the name of _Emrys_. "No, I am not looking for an Emrys." Then he remembered the werewolves that attacked the tavern and took Merlin. But now it seems that they took Elyan also. He turned to the chocolate-colored man. "You were captured weren't you?" He asked and Elyan nodded in response. "Was there a man with you? He has short dark hair, blue eyes, and very high and sharp cheekbones. I believe he was injured. His is name is Merlin."

Elyan knows the man the prince is speaking of was the other prisoner that was brought in with him. Lancelot did mention his name was Merlin. "Yes but Sire, he is no longer at the castle of Fyrien."

"What? Then where is he now?" Arthur demanded.

"He is on a quest to the Perilous Land of the Fisher King," Nyssa replied.

Arthur's eyes narrowed in fury. "On a quest? On whose order?"

"By my master's order." Said Nyssa.

"And who is your master?"

"Right now, he is the leader of the Lycans."

Arthur snarled and throws a punch at the nymph before he realized that he just hit a woman but he didn't care. He traveled far away from home to rescue the person who was most important to him, just to find out the Lycan had sent him off somewhere else. All reason is lost to Arthur now as he picked up his sword (the hilt has been cooled down) and raises it up above his head to bring it down into the heart of the nymph but a hand catches his sword just as it was only an inch away from her.

He looked up to find Hanthur staring at him with his tiring but stern blue eyes. His head was bleeding from where it hit when he tumbled down the hill earlier. He also noticed that Hanthur had his sword but it was not unsheathed. The boy pushed Arthur's sword away as he felt the prince was loosing up the grip. "You can't hurt her." said Hanthur, standing in front of the prince.

"She is with the werewolves and she is a sorceress! She cannot be trusted, Hanthur!" Arthur shouted.

Hanthur shook his head.

Arthur leaned forward to the younger man and hissed, "You wouldn't even kill the werewolves if they did murder Merlin? Werewolves are a vicious kind and my father was right to destroy them."

The boy glared up to the prince angrily. "They are not the ones that are vicious. It is us humans who are vicious for we are the ones _killing them_, and invading _their lands_ like a plague."

"Then tell me why did they kill those innocents in the tavern?"

"Isn't it obvious? We are the ones who murdered their kind first?"

"Magic is dangerous."

"I don't remember werewolves ever using magic before my prince," he snarled irritably. "Why did they attack our kind? Same reason as humans do when an intruder enters into their territory. Is it so wrong for them to kill to protect their own kind when we are doing the same thing? We are not so different from each other."

As much as Arthur hated to be wrong, he couldn't ignore what Hanthur had said. He could not allow him to walk free after speaking ill of his father. He unsheathed his sword and glared at the younger man. "Draw your sword."

"Be reasonable, Arthur!" Hanthur shouted.

"Draw your sword!"

"No."

Arthur huffed out frustratingly. He could just knock Hanthur out while finishing off the wooden nymph but for some reason his body would not make any move to do it. "Why are you defending her? She has magic!"

Hanthur knows exactly why he has to protect Nyssa. He was shocked to meet the woman who will be his_ godmother_ here in this forest but he was glad that he woke up in time to save her from his father. "Just because she has magic does not make her evil! It is unjust to kill her without any evidence!" Hanthur huffed out, feeling very dizzy from the pain in his head but needing to get through to his father's thick skull. "You said to me you would be a better king than your father! I believed you; I believe you will one day surpass your father." He looked into Arthur's eyes full of faith. "But in order to do that, you will have to be true to your heart, Arthur. Look at her," He pointed to Nyssa. "Is she really posing a threat to us? She healed you and she helped Elyan escape from the castle of Fyrien."

Arthur looked to the sickly-looking chocolate-colored man who gave him a confirmation nod confirming that what Hanthur had said was correct. Slowly, he lowered his sword, considering. "What about Merlin?"

"There has to be a reason," he noted and turned back to Nyssa, who gives Hanthur a clouding stare. There is something about Hanthur but she couldn't pinpoint what it was. "Right?"

Without breaking her stare with him, she nods. Arthur finally sheathed his sword; deciding to listen to Hanthur's advice for once. "Who are you?" She asked as the boy helped her up.

Hanthur smile a little bit. "I'm Hanthur Penny," He answered. "Now, can you tell me what are you guys doing here?"

Elyan explained about him and Solomon running into a near-death knight who begged them to deliver a secret scroll to the Camelot king as Nyssa healed the deep cut on Hanthur's head. He briefly explained that the creatures that had attacked the tavern are the same type creatures that were chasing the prince and his companion. Also, he added that they were not werewolves but shape-shifters. Although, they were lead by a real werewolf.

Arthur finally understand why the dead werewolves in the tavern didn't turn back to their human form when they were dead and why Gaius make the mistake of thinking that it was werewolf. Shape-shifter has the tendency of mimicking their victims.

Elyan grieved deeply when Arthur told him about his companion's death. After a brief period of mourning, he explained why he was in the Bildungsroman Forest with Nyssa—including the Fomorroh that was implanted into his head and of the leader of the Lycans, Alastair, who sent him into the forest for protection. Then Nyssa also explained why Alastair sent Merlin to the Perilous Land of the Fisher King.

"So you don't know who this dark wizard is and you don't know what he is planning?" Asked Arthur after the wooden nymph explained about the mysterious wizard.

She nodded in response. "All I know is that my master is afraid of him."

"Did you see what was written in the scroll?" Elyan asked.

Arthur shook his head. "But if this dark wizard wanted something that belonged to Camelot then he is a threat to the kingdom," He said and looked up to Hanthur, who was washing the dried blood that caked over his hair. "What do you think, Hanthur?"

Hanthur looked up in surprise. He didn't think that Arthur would ask his opinion since his opinions have done nothing but anger the prince. Although, he already knows whom this dark wizard is, though he did not think it wise to tell his father that yet. "Well, it might get you angry."

"Try me." Arthur said dryly.

Hanthur sighed. "Your father created a lot of demons, Arthur," He said, looking at the prince carefully. He doesn't want to piss Arthur off twice in one day but when Arthur did not show any sign of emotion, he continued. "I believe this dark wizard is one of them."

"And what do you think we should do?"

Again, Hanthur was surprised that Arthur was asking for his advice. "I think that you should undo your father's mistakes—"

"You think what my father's doing is a mistake?"

"Look around you, Arthur," He said throwing his arms around their surroundings. "Can you see the lives of this forest? It's _so_ beautiful, _so_ different from the forest without magic. Yes, we met the angry Manticore and were chased by the madness of shape shifters—who they did not have any magic—but this forest has magic and has not done any harm to us. I know you love your father but he is not perfect. He make mistakes and one of those mistakes was banning magic."

Arthur rubbed his hands together as he thought of all the people with magic that were executed in Camelot. Thinking back, his father never brought any of them to justice. He killed them the same day they were discovered—some of them claimed to be innocent but they were never given a fair trial. In his heart, he loves his father but those lives that were taken leave Arthur with uncomfortable level of guilt hanging on his shoulders. Then the screams and begging for mercy from all the villages of the Druids, Dwarves, Elves, and many others from the war sounded in his head. _What if it were them who hunted humans, what would Arthur have done? _Arthur knew the answer to that question. He would have done the same thing; planned a war and took back what belonged to him—just like his enemy was doing now. But he is not going to admit that out loud.

"I'm sorry but we have to go," said Nyssa helping Elyan up. "Your highness," She said and Arthur turned to look at her. As if she had read his mind, she said, "I don't know if you are going to follow in your father's footsteps or make your own path but whatever that you chose, please chose the one who you will not regret." Then she turned on her heels and walking away.

Elyan bowed respectfully to his prince. "Please tell Gwen that I won't return home anytime soon. I bid you a safe trip back home, your highness." Then he followed Nyssa away.

As they were gone, Arthur and Hanthur fell into complete silence. Arthur did not talk, just stared into the space in front of him. Hanthur did not want them to go back to where they were in the beginning—arguing all of the time and not talking at all. Since Arthur broke the ice last time, Hanthur decided to do it this time. "My father was a great man, you know?" he said as he sat next to the prince. Arthur knows what the boy was doing and gives him his attention. "I never knew him but my mother and uncles talked about him all the time. They always told me stories of him; of how he would travel to unknown lands, facing great dangers, saving damsels in distress, and how he…united the five kingdoms." Arthur laughed at the last statement—thinking Hanthur was fooled by his mother and uncles but Hanthur only smiled, knowing that the man beside him would in fact achieve this one day. "Even though, I never saw him or talked to him before, I feel like I know him."

"How did he die?" Arthur decides to ask.

"He was struck down by a dark wizard while trying to protect his kingdom," He answered.

"You talk as if he was a king. Are you a prince, Hanthur?"

Hanthur looked at the man who will one day be his father with sad eyes. "No, but to every boy their father is a king."

Arthur thinned his lips and nods. "True," He said. "But there is one thing I don't understand."

"What?"

"If your father and uncles were killed by magic, why do you still believe that magic is not evil?"

'_Because Merlin and many others who could wield magic in the future were not evil' _is what Hanthur wanted in response but knows he could not. Instead, he said, "Because I see magic only as a weapon."

Arthur huffed out, feeling a little frustrated with the boy's opinion. "Well, you need you rethink it over." He stood up and dusted the dirt from his pants away.

"So where are you going now that Merlin is no longer at the castle of Fyrien?" Asked Hanthur as he also stood up.

Arthur took another moment of silence and then said, "First, we are going to go find Leon and that servant boy and then we are going to the Perilous Land of the Fisher King."

Hanthur smiled. "Sound like a good plan, _your highness._"

Arthur could not do anymore than return the smile. He was glad that he and the boy finally managed to get along.

* * *

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	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer:** Merlin doesn't belong to me.

**Special thanks to:** KENYA 1234 FOR EDITING AND ALL MY READERS WHO TOOK THEIR TIMES TO WRITE ME REVIEWS! I APPRECIATE IT GREATLY SO KEEP ON GIVING ME REVIEWS!

* * *

Chapter 15

Evan and Leon searched for Arthur and Hanthur for hours having no luck in finding them. However, Leon understood fully that the Bildungsroman forest is enchanted and knows there is more to it that meets the eye. In just their first step entering the forest they were chased by huge hungry black spiders. Leon bravely built a fire the second they had a chance and scared the nasty creatures away. Then Leon almost became a happy meal to a large flesh-eating flower. Luckily for him, Evan cut the tongue off of it and saved the knight's life. It was at that moment that Leon started to have an odd feeling tugging at his heart.

What happened next was beyond belief. They soon found themselves being chased by giant rabbits. Those white fluffy creatures with large red eyes may look cute but they are extremely vicious.

After they escaped the evil rabbits, Leon was not amused when Evan decided that Arthur and Hanthur were probably dead and that he and Leon should return to Camelot to tell the unfair king of their misfortune. But Leon was determined and the brave and most loyal knight would not give up on Camelot's prince.

As the sun was going down Leon suggested they should climb up a tree and sleep on one of the giant branches. As they climbed up, Evan's foot slipped but Leon quickly caught his hand before he fell. As his blue eyes met his green ones, Leon felt his heart skip a beat.

He pulled the manservant up to the branch he was standing on and reluctantly moved his hand away once he was safely next to him. The branch was indeed huge possibly able to fit from three to six people easily to stand on.

"Do you think they are still alive?" Evan asked, acting oblivious to seeing the crimson color on the knight's face.

"Well, we are alive," the knight stated, placing his hands on his hips, still not facing her. "So I believe they are too."

Evan smiled seeing the shyness in the strong knight. He sat down, took a piece of bread out from his leather bag and tapped the knight's hand with it. Leon looked down to the smiling manservant and suddenly those lush red lips were all that he could see. _When did he start to feel this way towards the little misfit?_

"Come on, eat," Evan insisted and tapped the knight's hand with the bread again. "We will both be needing our strength to search for the prince tomorrow, right?"

Leon nodded and took the bread but his eyes never left from the manservant's lips.

Evan felt his stomach bubbling timidly as he sensed Leon's intense staring and it made him want to jump the knight but then Hanthur's disapproved face and words came to mind. _If he falls in love with you in the male form and when he takes off your clothes and you're a female? What do you think he will do to you?_

He frowned infuriatingly, hating to admit that the future prat was right. If he wanted to stay alongside with Leon he would have to be patient. "I'm tired, I think I'm just going to turn in." He laid down onto the surprisingly comfortable tree branch and closed his eyes.

Leon sighed and decided to sleep also.

* * *

The blizzard of snow and strong wind was harsh but the barrier spell that Merlin cast before they entered into the Land of the Ice Giants kept them all warm. They traveled in silence for two hours all to prevent stirring any violent creatures. One and half hours more and the land would switch. They had to get there before it happened.

Gwaine halted their walk as an arrow of a device he called a compass twisted around like crazy. "Damn it," he cursed under his breath and put it in one of his pockets.

"What is it?" Merlin asked.

Gwaine turned to his travelers. "Dark magic," he answered. "It's messing up the coordinator."

"What are we going to do now?" Lancelot asked, checking Matthias under his coat to see if he is okay.

Truthfully, Gwaine wasn't sure what to do next. He came to the Land of the Ice Giants only once before and when he did he depended on the compass the entire time. The weather was unpredictable and the storm a hazard. If Merlin's magic wore off—which he thinks it will be soon—then they will be screwed.

"Would my magic be able to cleanse the dark magic?" Merlin asked as he took in the troubled look on his new friend's face.

The dark hair tour guide shrugged. "That depends on if you ever used your magic to do dark magic before."

Merlin shook his head. "I used it to pull pranks but never for dark magic."

Gwaine tightened his lips considering. "We could give it a try," he said with a shrug and waited for Merlin to purify the air but the warlock seemed to be waiting for him to tell him how. "You don't know how to purify magic?"

Merlin's face flushed in embarrassment.

Lancelot decided to step up to his magical friend, fronting face to face with him. "Okay, from what I know. You close your eyes, clear your mind, and let the magic flow through you."

Merlin did as he was instructed to but nothing happened. He opened one of his eyes to see if there were any difference but there was none. Gwaine was standing behind him with his arms crossed, waiting patiently.

"Clear your mind," Lancelot reminded him.

Merlin tried again but still couldn't feel it.

"You have to clear your mind, Merlin," Lancelot repeated and again his magical friend tried and again, nothing. "Is your mind clear?"

"Yes! Yes, it is," Merlin snapped in frustration as he failed again.

"You have too many thoughts and worries," said Matthias as he came out from Lancelot's jacket and stood on his shoulder. "Try this. Think of a nice and isolated place. Come on, close your eyes." Merlin worked his jaw for a moment and closed his eyes. "Imagine, a hill filled with open green grass with no one there except for you. The breeze is light but cool. The sun is not too hot and too warm." As Merlin listened to Matthias' voice describing the peaceful place, all his worries started to melt away. "The blue is light blue with patches of fluffy clouds. You are sitting on a boulder barefoot, but it's okay because there is nothing, _no one_, there that can hurt you." Merlin suddenly felt a very strange but familiar soothing aura flowing throughout his body.

Lancelot and Gwaine's eyes widened and mouths dropped in awe as Merlin starting to float up into mid-air with his clothes flowing with the wind. He was glowing in a silvery blue light and suddenly the blizzard subsided and the thick air thinned becoming fresh. Gwaine slowly took out his compass and looked at it again. It stopped twisting wildly pointing in the right direction.

"Merlin," Gwaine said and the warlock opened his eyes and they all gasped as the silvery light glow silhouetting his body exploded, pushing his friends to the ground. The waves of magic created ringlets like water washing around them. Lancelot couldn't believe it as he realized that Merlin's blank eye color was not gold like the people with magic but violet.

"Merlin!" Lancelot called, trying to snap his magical friend back to reality.

Meanwhile, Gwaine felt the ground tremble slightly at his feet. "Damn it," he muttered slowly unsheathing his sword.

Merlin gasped as he realized he was floating mid-air. His eyes turned back to his brilliant blue ones but the magic that was seeping out from him did not disappear gently placing him down on the ground again. A smile graced his lips as he could feel his own magic flowing in and out of him. "Did you see? Did you see me?! That was…that was so awesome!" Merlin shouted cheerfully.

His wanderer friend was grinning back proudly at his magical friend, but decided not to tell Merlin what he had seen. He hadn't seen Merlin smile since they met up again.

"Merlin, I'm glad that you have learned to purify magic but we've got company," said Gwaine, backing up to them. He wanted his new magical friend to enjoy this moment but was happy the moment was gone when they started to feel the ground trembling.

They turned to where their tour guide was glaring. What they both saw was something they would never have imagined seeing in their life. In front of them was a huge ice creature. It had human features but its body was pure white ice and it looked very angry to see them.

"I-is that what you call an Ice Giant?" Merlin asked uneasily.

Gwaine nodded, glancing down to his compass. "Run," he said and started to run forward as the Ice Giant let out a loud scream and ran after them.

Merlin snatched Matthias off from the ground putting him in his pocket as he ran between Gwaine and Lancelot. The ground shook tremulously each step the ice giant took. The hard-snowed ground started to crack creating fractures on it.

"We have less than an hour and thirty minutes to get off this land or it will shift us," Gwaine shouted, gripping tightly to his sword.

Merlin replied, "I will use my magic to help—"

"No, it will be unwise to go into the inner land without magic," he stated and looked between Lancelot and Matthias. "So it's up to us."

Both the wanderer and mouse nodded in understanding as they moved forward toward the coming ice giant army. "Do they have any weaknesses?" asked Lancelot, gripping onto his own sword before him.

Gwaine grinned. "Yeah, cut the head."

Lancelot frowned as they stopped suddenly and twisted around to face the charging and roaring ice giants. Matthias had jumped out from Merlin's pocket and stood in his fighting stance beside the two large men.

Lancelot, Gwaine, and Matthias charged forward towards the ice giant's head on. While Merlin stood behind his friends watching their backs, he felt pathetic. He was a man also, regardless of his lack of fighting skills. He wanted to fight alongside them, not watch them from behind. Clenching both of his fists by his sides, he decided he wanted to help regardless of what Gwaine instructed him not to do. Again, he closed his eyes, cleared his mind, and concentrated his magic in the direction of both of his palms.

He raised his hands up and when he opened his eyes, it flashed violet again instead of gold. The magic surfing out from his palms was too powerful, even for him to control. The force also blasted him away to the ground a few feet away as he ignited it.

The magic came flying past them and straight into the ice giant's heart, shattering it to splinter pieces.

Gwaine and Matthias turned to where the magic came from and saw Merlin on the ground. "Damn it," he cursed and sheathed his sword. The magic blast was awesome but the explosion probably echoed through the Land of the Ice Giant. They would have to move fast if they wanted to get to the next land. He wasn't sure how they were going to survive the second land if Merlin already used up his magic saving their asses. "Come on, Lance," said Gwaine turning to see his wanderer friend but inhaled in confusion as he saw a large piece of the splinter from the ice giant sticking out of Lancelot's stomach. The wanderer looked horrified as his wide eyes met Gwaine's. "Oh my god." He caught Lancelot as the wanderer finally collapsed.

Merlin's hands were in pain and he felt very drained. He did not understand what went wrong. How did he manage to injure himself? Did he overdo it?

He felt a small body climb on top of him and he knew it was the mouse warrior. "Matthias, is it gone?"

"Yes, but mate, your friend is injured."

"What?" He quickly sat up and saw Gwaine was holding Lancelot in his arms and all the color on his face drained away. He quickly got to his feet and ran to his wanderer friend's side. Gwaine's left cheek received a nasty cut and blood was flowing down his face while Lancelot had a large ice splinter sticking out from his stomach. He was gasping, trying to stay awake.

"Oh my god," he said in a tremor voice and took out his medic kit stumbling to get clean cloths. "Oh my god," he repeated and piled the cloths around the splinter, trying to stop the bleeding. I'm so sorry, Lancelot." He felt that it was his fault that this happened to his wanderer friend. If he hadn't used his magic, Lancelot would not have been injured. He looked up to Gwaine, who seemed to be in shock at the moment. "Can we take it out?"

Gwaine shrugged not knowing the correct answer for Merlin.

"I am going to find high ground to see if there are anymore threats out there," said Matthias as he scurried away.

The wound _looked _bad. Gwaine wasn't sure if taking it out _was_ even an option. Lancelot could bleed to death but the splinter was still made of ice. It would eventually melt and he could still bleed to death. After a few seconds that felt like hours, he finally turned to Merlin. He could see the blistering burns on his magical friend's hands and judging by the powerful force of the blast Merlin created, Merlin was probably low on his magical power or maybe even out of it. But, they had no choice now. If they did not use magic to heal Lancelot, he would die. "Merlin, do you have any magic left?"

Merlin blinked, looking very guilt-ridden. Knowing he had drained all his magic in that single blast. "I-I doesn't know."

"We have to try," said Gwaine, licking his bottom lips nervously.

Merlin nodded in agreement with their tour guide. He placed his blistering hands to his friend's stomach and concentrated on his magic again. His eyes turn violet but nothing happened. He tried again but nothing. "Come on!" Merlin screamed, infuriatingly. He could not let Lancelot die! Not like this. Lancelot had always been there for him and through so much. He was Merlin's biggest supporter. He could not lose Lancelot. Again, he tried and failed.

Lancelot's eyes were fluttering shut.

"No, no, no, Lancelot, stay with me. Stay with me!" Merlin shouted frantically as tears were streaming down his eyes. He desperately tried to call out everything to get any of his magic to heal his friend's wound but it didn't work. Lancelot's body suddenly went still and Merlin felt like his own heart stopped. "Lancelot." He blinked slowly; expecting Lancelot to answer his call, like he always had…but he did not answer him this time. Lancelot remained still, looking paler by the second.

But, Merlin did not give up. He recited every healing spell he remembered still hoping that he could save Lancelot.

Meanwhile, Gwaine watched Merlin still trying to save Lancelot, trying to remember if he ever encountered a witch or wizard that could absorb magic. This piece of ice land is filled with magic from white to black magic everywhere. It was then he remembered a witch he met a year ago—a blond eel mermaid witch. Her name was long forgotten but he witnessed her absorb the magic that floated around to perform miracles. What were her exact words? Then it all came back to him. "Merlin, I've got an idea!"

Merlin looked up Gwaine, confused before responding. "What?"

Gwaine pointed up to the sky. Both Merlin and Gwaine could see the magic Merlin released earlier still floating in the air. "Absorb it and heal Lancelot."

"What? How?" asked Merlin. "Is that even possible?"

"I don't know but it's worth a try."

Merlin looked at Lancelot again. He could not lose his best friend. "How?"

"Try to relax like how you did a while ago and chant after me," he said.

Merlin wiped his tears with his sleeves and nodded in understanding. He closed his eyes imagining himself in a place of peace. He inhaled and exhaled to calm his heart down. He distantly heard Gwaine's voice saying the spell in an ancient wording that Merlin never heard of. Merlin repeated the spell and keep chanting it. Slowly, Merlin started to feel his magic returning to him again. His hands were no longer in pain and weirdly enough, he could _feel_ the heartbeat of his unborn child.

"Merlin." A hand touched his and he looked down to Lancelot staring back at him. The ice splinter was gone and his injury was glowing blue as the magic was healing it.

A relieved smile graced Merlin's lips. "Oh thank god." He held his best friend's hand comfortingly.

"You're welcome but I am not god," Gwaine pouted, frowning.

Merlin couldn't help himself and hugged the tour guide. He did not know what would happen to them if he was not with them. "Thank you, Gwaine."

Gwaine just smiled but as Merlin turned his attention back to his wanderer friend, Gwaine's smile faded. What he had seen, he had never seen anything like it before. He might have seen the eel mermaid witch used the same spell to absorb power _and_ used it to incarnate _another _spell to heal but when Merlin was chanting the spell, magic came to him and healed all of them. The pain from the cut he got from the explosion of the ice giant had been healed completely. _Maybe the rumor was true. Merlin will become the greatest wizard of all times._

"Ah, mate, I'm glad you're okay," said Matthias as he came back from his watch.

"The explosion didn't awaken any other creatures did it?" asked Gwaine.

"No, but it seems we won't be able to continue our journey until Lancelot is well," said Matthias.

"No, I can—" Lancelot trying to get up but the pain ripped through his body as soon as he did.

Merlin frowned at him. "No, we will travel when you're completely heal."

"But—"

"No buts, my wanderer friend," said Gwaine. "If you think what we saw today is bad, wait until we get to the second land. Therefore, I recommend you to rest."

"Although, dusk is coming. We can't stay here," Matthias pointed out.

Gwaine nodded and turned to Lancelot and Merlin. "Could you walk or do you want me to carry you? Princess style?" he teased.

Lancelot frowned, obviously not finding the joke funny, but he really could not move.

The tour guide laughed heartily. "Princess style it is then."

* * *

Hanthur was awakened by a tug on his shoulder. He opened his eyes too see Arthur moving away. He yawned, stretched his limbs, and stood up. They were sleeping on a large tree branch. They figured the caves were too dangerous and unpredictable so sleeping somewhere high would be safer. Then he heard growling and snapping below them. He looked down and realized that they were surrounded by shape-shifters taken form of werewolves again.

He turned to the prince, whom had his arms crossed. "I was thinking maybe we could go our separate ways," said Arthur.

Hanthur gaped at Arthur in disbelief. "What? You want us to be separated? We can't even find Leon and Evan, why should we go our own separate ways?" he asked.

"You remember the cave where I left you yesterday, right?" he asked, ignoring the boy's question.

Hanthur nodded.

"Well, I'm going to lure these bastards away and I will come find you later," he said.

Hanthur thinning his lips, unimpressed with what he was hearing now. "That is a stupid idea."

Arthur glared at Hanthur. "You have any other plan? You already know we are outnumbered."

"But—"

"I will be fine," Arthur assured him. "Plus, I'm the faster runner."

The boy frowned. "No, you are not."

Arthur just smirked and started to climb down. "Remember where to meet me."

As Leon and Evan walked cautiously through the forest, they heard trotting sounds like running horses coming from a distance. Both of them shared an unease but irritated look. After they got a good night sleep, the first thing they did when they woke up was run for their lives again. Apparently the nasty giant spider had found them. Less than an hour, they were chased, met many near death circumstances, and almost became food for any and all of the creatures in the forest without catching a real break. The sun was finally dawning and they were very exhausted.

They turned towards where the trotting sound was coming from and they both gasped. There must have been two hundred knights on horses coming towards them.

A very your man, who looked like he was no more than fifteen years old, came forth on his horse. As he approached, Evan felt threatened by his presence for some reason. He used his sensitive mermaid skin skill to feel what was wrong in front of him and what he felt was _terrifying_. The knights in front of them were all dead, except for the boy. _He had magic, powerful dark magic._ He realized.

"State your name," said the boy.

Leon recognized the family crest on the cape the boy was wearing. "You are wearing the Crest of the Walter family," he said with recognition.

The boy arched an eyebrow. "And you are?"

"I am Sir Knight Leon from Camelot."

The boy looked a bit confused and came down from his horse. "From Camelot? What are you doing here in this dreadful forest?"

"Then what are _you_ doing here?" Evan asked and the boy glared down on him, silencing him.

Leon pulled Evan away. He did not want the manservant to get into trouble by offended the son of Sir Walter. Even if Leon was from a great and respectable family, this land still belonged to the Walter family. "I apologize for my manservant's behavior. We were on a rescue mission and got lost along the way," explained Leon.

The boy was considerate in listening to the knight's reasoning. "Well, this forest is not safe. We will escort you out from here," he said climbing back onto his horse's back.

Leon came forward. "No, no, we can't," he said. "Prince Arthur is also here."

The boy gasped. "Prince Arthur? Arthur from Camelot?"

* * *

Arthur glared at the werewolves before lunging towards them but he stopped as an army of arrows came raining down plunging into all the fake werewolves. He did not understand what was happening but he could hear the werewolves' whimpering cowardly around him as they tried and failed to escape.

After a few seconds, the arrows stopped coming down and Arthur looked up to see an army of knights coming down the hill. They were holding the crest of the Walter Family. He looked around again and the werewolves were all either dead or going to die.

A dark curly haired knight came to Arthur on a white horse. "Are you all right, your highness?" Then he noticed Arthur's open wound. "You're injured." He jumped off of his horse and waved to the hill and a red haired manservant came down running, along with Sir Leon and the manservant, Evan.

Arthur exhaled in relief. He was in fact injured by the shape-shifter werewolf again on his run but it was not as bad as the last one. "Who are you?" he asked.

The knight smiled. "My name is Wallace Mordred Walter, son of Lord Walter," he introduced himself.

"Your highness, you are hurt?!" Leon shouted as he ran towards his prince with Evan trailing after, looking very worried. "I'm so sorry! I should have been here."

"I'm okay._ I'm okay_, Leon," Arthur assured his blonde knight as he helped the prince to sit on a boulder, still staring skeptically at the dark curly haired knight.

Evan looked around, looking a little flustered, when he couldn't find Hanthur anywhere. "Where is Hanthur?"

"I told him that I would meet him at the cave that way," he pointed to cave's direction from yesterday.

The knight, Wallace Mordred Walter, commanded his knights to go towards that direction with Evan.

"How did you find me, Wallace?" Arthur asked as the red manservant helped him out of his shirt and started to stitch him back up.

"Please, call me Mordred," he insisted as he turned to sit on the opposite side of the Camelot prince. "I was on a hunt when I ran into your two men. They told me that you and your friend ran into this forest." He exhaled through his nose. "I did not know that I would be rescuing the Prince of Camelot."

Arthur scoffed. "So if I were just a wanderer, you would have come here and helped?"

"Yes," Mordred said straightly.

"Really?"

"If you haven't noticed, your highness, my home is placed near this forest," he gestured his hand around the forest. "Many of my people _wander_ here a lot. Why do you think I know this place so well?"

Arthur's blues meet Mordred's blue ones. There was something uncomfortable and cold about those eyes. "Well, I'm grateful you were here to help. My father shall hear of your greatness."

"You should go back to my place and rest. I will send—"

"No," Arthur interrupted. "We are here on a mission. After this guy patches me up, we will depart from here, my good sir."

Mordred looked at the prince in confusion. "But sire, this forest is dangerous."

"I know," Arthur replied. "I have been chased by a Manticore and fake werewolves all day, trust me—I know."

The young Walter heaved a sigh. "Then I will go with you."

"No, you are not," he said.

"I know this forest. It's safer if I go with you."

"I am not risking anyone else's life. So no."

"With all due to respect, your highness, you are risking lives here if you do not know this forest. I will send the others home if that will make you feel better. I know this forest like the back of my hand. I could be of help," he said genuinely.

Arthur heaved a long sigh and looked to Leon for a second opinion. When he saw his blond knight nod, he knew it would be easier if they walked through this horrid forest with someone who knew the place. "Fine."

Mordred finally smiled. "Thank you, sire. You won't be disappointed."

Just as he said that, there is a familiar roaring echoing through the forest and it was coming from where he left Hanthur. Arthur slowly stood up, he knew that roar; it was the roar of a Manticore. "We have to get to Hanthur," he said urgently. "Get me a horse!"

Arthur was late. Hanthur knows the prince did not specifically give him a time but it had been an hour and Arthur was nowhere to be seen. He told himself that when the sun goes down towards the west in another quarter, he was going to go find Arthur.

Then he saw something shiny in the corner of his eyes that made him turn in that direction. He gasped as he saw the male version of Evelyn standing not far away from where he was.

"Evelyn!" he said and ran to give hugs to the boy version of the mermaid. "Thank god, you are okay."

At the moment, Evan couldn't find his voice to say anything because Hanthur's action was unexpected. "W-well, yeah," he said, clearing his throat and Hanthur finally let go, blushing as he realized what he just did. "Anyways, we got to get to your father!"

Hanthur looked at Evan confusingly but then he looked past her and saw twenty knights' bodies lying around them. "What happened?" he demanded, turning back to the mermaid seeing fear in his eyes.

"They were already dead, Hanthur," Evan said. "I just put them to rest."

Hanthur frowned in confused. "What?"

"Me and Leon ran into a man who called himself Mordred—" Evan didn't even have to finish the rest of that sentence. When Hanthur heard that name, he knew he had to find Arthur.

"Where is Arthur?" he demanded just before both of them heard the roar of the Manticore. They looked up and saw Manticore charging at them.

Hanthur unsheathed his sword and held it before them defensively. He would fight this beast if he had to, in order to get to his father. He would not let his father fall now.

Evan spotted a large deep sparkling river nearby, he knew Hanthur would not stand a chance against the Manticore. And understood what he had to do. "Hanthur," he started and his eyes shifted to look at him but his face remained unmoved. "Don't be afraid, okay?" He said and Hanthur's brow furrowed in confusion but Evan just smiled as he started stripping. Hanthur wanted to look away but Evan—Evelyn now—was walking the direction where the Manticore was coming from. He wanted to stop her but he saw the river and knew what she was doing. Her mermaid form was probably the only way to help them now.

As Evelyn dived into the water, he thought she was going to come out in her mermaid form but he was so wrong. A very big and very long—probably twenty feet long—black serpent with three rounded emerald eyes on each side of her head rose up from the rivers. Her head was flattened but spiked with horns. There were no scales, instead it was shimmering slimy like an eel and her spine trailed down with sharp fins. At first, Hanthur wasn't sure if that was Evelyn but as she turned her head to him, she did not attack. Actually she seemed to be smiling at his dumbstruck and shocked face.

The Manticore sensed her presence and stopped from going towards Hanthur but it roared at her. Evelyn hissed back at the beast and snapped her jaw at it. The Manticore roared and leaped up to scratch the eel's, Evelyn's head. She wiggled her head; tried to get the Manticore but it clawed flesh deep into Evelyn's head. She let out a cry and silvery blue lightening lit up and blasted the half/man and half/lion a few hundred feet away from her. She screeched and the water exploded from the river and attacked the beast before it could get up. Then she sent another wave at lightening force and with one last cry from the Manticore. Everything went silent.

Evelyn slithered to land and her giant serpent form slowly changed back into her mermaid form. Hanthur rushed towards her with her clothes in worry. She looked really worn out. "Hey," he said and pulls her into his arms, not caring that she was nude. She was shaking badly and her head and shoulders were bleeding from where the Manticore clawed her. "Are you all right?"

She looked up at him through her half-opened lids. "Y-yeah, I j-just haven't use that form…for a while," she answered, smiling but it faded as she saw the Manticore was not dead and watching it sneaking up behind Hanthur. She quickly pushed Hanthur out of the way and the half-dead Manticore's jaw snap into her midsection and she screamed.

"Evelyn!" Hanthur shouted angrily and stood up quickly and plunged the sword into the Manticore's neck but it still wouldn't let Evelyn go. It pushed Hanthur to the ground and his hand slipped from his sword—leaving it sticking onto the Manticore's neck and still carrying Evelyn in its mouth. "No!" He screamed and ran after it.

The Manticore ran into the cave, thinking that it would find a hiding place while it snacked on the prey in his mouth but Evelyn shouted out a spell and the force of blue lightning burned its mouth forcing it to let her go. But the Manticore slipped into the dark hold before he let go and both of them were falling. She thought she was going to die when a hand grabbed her wrist just in time but she was still off of the cliff of the hole. She looked up and saw Hanthur.

He was struggling to hold onto Evelyn since her giant eel tail was not gone yet. "Hold on," he said, his voice strained as tried his hardest to pull her up but he couldn't and the sweat on his hand did not helping either.

"Hanthur!"

Both Hanthur and Evelyn froze as they heard Arthur's voice calling out to him. She looked at him. "Let me go," she said.

"No," Hanthur said.

"You have to."

He looked at her with his glassy blue eyes and his jaw clenched. "No."

She gave a frustrated look in return. "You can't let Arthur fall to the hand of Mordred," she reasoned but it only seemed to distress him even more. "Let go."

"Hanthur!"

The voice was coming closer behind him and as he turned around and saw his father and behind him followed _Mordred_. As they were approaching him, he looked down at Evelyn and smiled. She did not understand the smile, but then she saw his foot pretending to slip and both of them fell into the hole with Arthur and Leon's voice screaming his name.

Arthur was literally only a foot away from Hanthur when he witnessed the boy slip into the dark hole. "Hanthur!" He screamed into the hole and waited to hear an answer from the boy but instead heard nothing. "Hanthur!" He yelled closer to the edge looking to see anything but all he could see was darkness. He could not believe it. He could not believe Hanthur was dead. Guilt suddenly flooded through his body. He was the one brought the young boy into this journey. How was he going to explain it to Gaius that his only grandson was dead? How would Merlin take it knowing that Hanthur died trying to rescue him?

"Its a portal," Mordred said bringing Arthur back to reality.

"What?"

Mordred straightened his knight's uniform. "In the Bildungsroman Forest, there are a lot of portals leading to other places that still holds magic. A lot of magical creatures can escape from here by going through them, except shape-shifters."

"So you are saying, this portal will lead them into another place?" Arthur asked.

Mordred nodded. "But we don't know where it will lead us too though. It could be a less or more dangerous place than the Bildungsroman Forest."

Arthur heaved a sigh and swiped a hand over his face, frustrated. Then he asked Mordred a question that he thought he would never ask. "Is there anyone here with magic that could help us?"

"_Sire_," Leon said in shock. Even Mordred looked surprised.

"I want to know if Merlin is okay," he said sternly leaving them no room for argument.

Mordred nodded. "I don't know anyone with magic but there is a pond a mile from here. It will show you whomever or whatever you wish to see," he said.

Arthur nodded, acknowledging. "Show me the way."

* * *

"So you never want to settle down?" Lancelot asked as they walked through the deserted Iceland the next morning when he was healed well enough to travel again.

As Lancelot was better, Gwaine check his compass to find they needed to travel south. After two hours of walking, the tour guide was sure they are getting closer to the second land.

Gwaine looked over his shoulder to spy on the warlock. Merlin was asking Matthias questions to about the magic world. Merlin hasn't spoken much after what happen the day before. He seemed more determined to improved his magic, which Gwaine kind of glad to know.

He lolled his head over to the wanderer friend again. "Why would you want to settle down with one woman? I mean its got to be very boring doing the same woman every night."

Lancelot grimaced. "Is there a difference?"

"Yes," he said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "The muscle of a va—"

"Okay, I think I heard enough," Lancelot said and the tour guide just let out an amusing laugh. Lancelot shook his head at Gwaine's ridiculous view of living.

Gwaine throw his arms around his new friend's shoulders. "What about you? You're a marriage kind of guy so have you ever find the right girl?"

A name did pop in his mind but Lancelot knows that was a long time ago. She was now with Arthur. _Arthur_. Anger seemed to stir his inside whenever he thought of the Camelot prince these days. He knows it was because the prince had cheated on Gwen by sleeping with Merlin, who was Lancelot's best friend. Although, he couldn't get angry with Merlin since Merlin had his own problems to deal with. He did not need to add Lancelot's anger into it.

Gwaine grimaced as he saw the distressed face Lancelot was making. "It was a just question, my wanderer friend," he said, patting his shoulder, he had no idea of what Lancelot was truly thinking of.

"No, that is—" he didn't get to finish when a very heavy weight just dropped on top of him and Gwaine. Both of them swore with an oath and pushed whatever landed on top of them off.

Merlin heard the thud ahead of them and saw his two friends were being crushed by two bodies. He quickly recognized one of the bodies was Hanthur. "Hanthur?" _Where the hell did he come from?_

"What the—" Gwaine turned around, sliding himself off from beneath the weight on top of him to find himself staring at a very beautiful boy staring back at him.

"Gwaine?" the boy whispered. His eyes brows knitted together; there was so much sadness behind those blue eyes that sent so many strange feelings through Gwaine's body, especially his heart. It felt like it was beating out of his throat.

"Who are you?" Gwaine managed to ask.

A smile suddenly graced the boy's lips and his arms just wrapped around Gwaine so suddenly but Gwaine did not know how to react to it. He tried to pat the boy on the shoulder to let him go but he stopped when the boy whispered, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I let you die." Then his body suddenly went limp into Gwaine's arms. Gwaine was confused as ever as he stared up to Lancelot, who was carrying an unconscious naked woman. He frowned. _Why couldn't he get the naked girl instead?_

"Hanthur!" They heard Merlin called as he came to their side.

"Hanthur?" Lancelot said questioningly and then realized that this boy is the boy Merlin had been telling him about; the time traveling prince.

"You know him?" Gwaine asked, laying the boy down gently on the soft snow.

Merlin didn't answer, just giving a nod instead. He frowned in worry as he realized that the boy's head was bleeding.

Mattie jumped down from Merlin's shoulder and looked the boy's head. "He's fine. Just a scratch," he said.

"Are you sure?" the warlock asked worryingly.

Mattie double-check him and nodded. "Yes." Then he went to check the naked blond girl as Lancelot put her down and covered her with his jacket. He noted all the deep claw and teeth marks on her. "Merlin, this one will need your healing magic. Its like she has been gnawed by a wild animal."

Merlin took one last look at Hanthur before he went to the girl. He didn't recognize the girl. _Who is she? And why is she with Hanthur? _Then he remembered Hanthur mentioning that his mother was very beautiful and had magic. _Is this girl Hanthur's mother?_

Merlin blinked at the realization and his heart broke a little, knowing he would never ever get a chance with Arthur. He closed his eyes and incarnated a healing spell taught to him—if he incarnated it wrong he could kill her. The idea was tempting but in seconds, her injuries were healed and no scars remained—as if she had never been attacked before. Her breathing evened out and she looked as if she were just sleeping.

"Ah, you are getting better fast, Emrys," said Mattie but Merlin just stood up and walked away. "Emrys."

Lancelot saw the troubled look on his friend face and walked after him. "Merlin, you shouldn't walk too far. We are close to the second land. If the land shifts, we will lose each other," he said after Merlin walked more than half a mile away from where the others were. "If something is troubling you, tell me."

He turned to face Lancelot. "Do you think I'm a terrible person?"

His wanderer friend looked at him in, confused. "What?"

"I slept with Arthur, knowing he was with Gwen. Just a second ago, I wanted to murder _that girl_ because she might be Hanthur's mother! I am a horrible person, Lancelot!" He shouted as tears sting his eyes but it refused to let it fall. Lancelot walked forward, wanting to comfort his friend but Merlin held his hand up, his eyes flashes gold, and a force stopped Lancelot from approaching.

Lancelot let out a stuttering breath. He did not want to anger the warlock—a very pregnant warlock. "It's not your doing, Merlin."

"Don't tell me it is not my doing when it is, Lancelot!" Merlin shouted, turning away and swipe his fingers through his hair, frustratingly. "Gwen is my friend and I betrayed her trust. I ruined my relationship with Arthur. I almost killed the woman who will become his wife. I'm not so different from a monster, Lancelot!"

"You're not a monster, Merlin! Did it occur to you that maybe you're acting out because…" he paused and closed his eyes, mortified.

"Because what?" Merlin asked, though it sounded like a plea.

Lancelot opened his eyes and looked at his friend in the eyes. "Because you _want_ to be with Arthur and you _want_ him to want the same thing too." He sighed. "I was mad at you for betraying Gwen," Lancelot finally admitted and as Merlin's sad eyes looked up to him. It hurt him also. "But I was the cause of this. If I had run away with her back then, we wouldn't be here today. It was my fault, for noticing your feelings for Arthur but still let Gwen take him from you."

Merlin looked at his wanderer friend in confused and shocked. "You knew? And you let it happen?" he asked and Lancelot reluctantly nodded.

"Yes, I knew and I let it happen," he admitted. "I also knew you wouldn't likely confessed because it will jeopardize your relationship with Arthur since you are not a woman and have magic.

Merlin's lips thinned, his eyes closed, and he turned away again. "I need to get some air," he said. "Don't worry, I won't go far." He left.

Lancelot wanted to follow and asked forgiveness but he couldn't move. "Merlin," he called but Merlin kept walking forward without looking back at him.

* * *

The pond was not like the other ponds in the forest. In this one, the water was muddy and there were only small fishes swimming around. There were also some black pebbles around the edges and some weeds sprouting randomly in some places but there were no flowers. Arthur turned to Mordred to confirm if this was the pond and the young lord nodded.

"Look into the water and just tell it what you wish to see," Mordred said.

Arthur handed Leon his sword and walked forward to the lake. As he bent down and sees his reflection on the water. "I wish to see Merlin," he said and then the water rippled and he saw Merlin. He was happy to see his manservant unharmed but there was something wrong. Merlin was outside in a deserted Iceland with…_Lancelot_? If Merlin was with Lancelot, then he would be safe. But it did raise some sticky questions since Elyan did not mention Lancelot. Did Lancelot run into Merlin? And if so, why hadn't Merlin returned yet? And why are they traveling? Is Merlin leaving Camelot? _Leaving him?_

Arthur wanted to march out from this horrid forest and find his manservant and tell him that he loves him and that he was an idiot but he can't. Hanthur had fallen into a portal that transported him to somewhere he did not even know of. Arthur needed to rescue Hanthur first before settling his situation with Merlin.

"Sire," Leon called out interrupting his thoughts.

"Merlin is safe." He came back to his feet. He turned to Mordred. "It won't be necessary for you to come with us any longer. Thank you for all your help," he said politely, taking his sword from Leon's hand. "Leon, I want you to stay with the young lord Mordred," he said, hinting his knight to keep watch of the young lad through his eyes.

"As you wish, sire," said the knight, understandably.

Mordred smirked at the comment but pretended to be clueless about it. "Your highness," he said, stopping the prince and his knight. "Since I did help, could I ask a favor?"

Arthur wasn't surprised at his request. "Go on."

"I have reached the age of eighteen three months ago. I wish to prove myself as a knight of Camelot. I wish to become an candidate."

Arthur studied the boy's face carefully before he answered, "In seven days, come to Camelot. We shall hold a tournament to see where you stand. Until then I cannot let you become a candidate," he informed politely.

"Thank you," Mordred bowed.

Arthur gives the boy a nod before turning back towards the direction of the cave. It took him less then fifteen minutes to get back to the cave. He took a deep breath and prayed that Mordred told the truth and jumped.

* * *

Merlin found himself an isolated spot a few miles away from the group. He sat on top of a giant boulder with his knees up and his arms wrapped around it as he laid his chin between his knees. He was no longer crying but he still felt like crap. He looked up to the clear blue skies and closed his eyes as he wished Arthur would just accept him. He almost jumped out of his skin as another body came raining down from the skies and landed a few feet away from where is sitting. He wasn't sure if the person was another friend of Hanthur but he went over to check anyways. The person might be badly injured. "Hey, are you all—" His voice ceased and his eyes widened as the person stood up.

"Arthur?" Merlin said, wasn't sure if his mind was playing tricks on him.

Right when Arthur jumped into the open mouth-caved underground of another cave, he kept falling and falling. When he thought he is not going to find solid ground to land, a bright light blinding him and before he knew it, he landed. Although the place he landed was on a very white and cold ground. He stood up, and looked what was ahead of him, and all he saw was miles and miles of white cold flat land. He wondered if the portal had taken him into another place instead of the same place it took Hanthur.

Then he heard his name called by the one person he had wanted to see most. When Arthur turned around to Merlin's voice and saw Merlin, his breath caught in his throat. It only had been a few days but it felt like years to Arthur. He walked slowly towards Merlin and lifted a hand up but he paused for a second as their eyes met. Merlin's eyes were so sad; it was so sad and it was because of him. There was even evidence of tears on his face which made his heart ache because he knew he was the one who did this. There was so much he wanted to say to wipe that sadness away but all the words were lost when he saw him. All he could do was pull Merlin into a hug.

For a few long seconds, Merlin did not respond back, he wasn't sure what Arthur's intentions were. But, when he felt Arthur grip his shirt he allowed himself to get lost in his warmth and the scent, and then he slowly wrapped his arms around Arthur's waist.

"I missed you," Arthur whispered as he gave Merlin a small kiss on the neck.

Merlin's eyes become glassy with tears and breathed out in relief. He did not care if this was a dream as long as he could just have Arthur in it. As long as he had Arthur he did not care if he ever woke up again. "I missed you too." Merlin said as he buried his face into Arthur's shoulder wishing that time would just stop.

Little did they notice that the land has shifted.

* * *

**A/N: **Yes, finally! Right? Take me long enough! Curse me! XD Merlin and Arthur were finally reunited but were separated from the group! So keep reading if you want to know what's going to happen between them. Also, Hanthur finally meet Gwaine! Yay! **SO** **REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! FOR MORE UPDATES!**


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